The Power He Knows Not
by Daisuke Shadow Kitsune
Summary: In the Department of Mysteries Harry encounters a mirror that sends him into another world; here Harry must learn what it means to be the guardian of his world and train before he may return home. In partnership with the guardian and keeper of the one world, Harry sets off on a journey unlike any he could have encountered in his own world.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Harry Potter, nor anything from or pertaining to the Potter-verse; they are the property of the brilliant J. K. Rowling.

**Warnings:** Mature Content, Graphic Language, Explicit Scenes, and so forth.

**Pairings:** Undecided as of yet. Suggestions may be considered.

**HP-HP-HP-HP-HP-HP-HP-HP-HP**

**The Power He Knows Not**

Chapter One: Through the Looking Glass and Down the Rabbit Hole

Location: Department of Mysteries (**Harry's P.O.V.**)

He dove into the room with a muffled sound as he rolled under a bright orange spell. He whipped his wand at the door, causing it to slam shut. The room began to revolve around him, the thirteen doors spinning around in a blur as he hauled himself to his feet. The doors slowed and stopped. His harsh breathing was the only noise. Harry looked around him at the thirteen doors, ignoring the one with a glowing red X on it. He did not know which door he had come in through. He raced towards the door to his right and ripped it open.

The room was dim. He could make out the shadowed form of a table, and several dark doorways stood open. "Lumos," he muttered, raising his wand up high as he stepped into the room.

He walked by the table, briefly glancing at the piles of misshapen items on the table. The first door to his left was an office. He peered right, and jumped to the side at the sudden light he spied. Harry paused. Looked closer at the room and realised he had jumped at his reflection in a massive mirror. Curiosity gripped him. _Is that the Mirror of Erised?_ He pondered, surprised that it had been moved from Hogwarts to some unknown part of the Department of Mysteries.

At the foot of the mirror he paused. Only his uncertain face peered back at him. He frowned, squinting his eyes as though to help procure his mom and dad. Heck, he would settle with any one of the relatives he saw in the mirror when he encountered it back in first year. He frowned, only then noticing that this mirror was not the same mirror. The mirror bore an onyx frame that shimmered in his wand-light. At the top, embossed with gold, was: Ehte tagof Ynitsed. _Whatever that means_, he lowered his was a bit, and paused as the wand-light reflected off a sticker attached to the frame. In loopy letters it read: 'Discovered August 1, 1980 in the Veil Room. Significance and Function Unknown.'

Harry frowned and shook his head. He did not have time for this! His friends were in trouble.

"Harry, look out!" Neville shouted.

Harry whipped around and spied a black-cloaked man that had somehow managed to sneak up behind him.

"STUPEFY!"

Harry brought his wand up as there was no way to dodge the red beam in the cramped room, but the spell struck him straight in the chest. With a whoosh of air, his breath left him as he was propelled backwards and into the blackness of unconsciousness.

**HP-HP-HP-HP-HP-HP-HP-HP-HP-HP-HP**

Location: A Living Room (**Harry's P.O.V.**)

Harry's first thought was that Dudley and Vernon was dancing on his skull, causing his crippling headache. Then he shot upright, his eyes wide.

"Easy there, boy," a woman said from his side.

Harry turned his face towards a smiling older woman.

"Good to see you are alright," she said. "You startled me when you suddenly flew across my living room."

He blinked at the woman and then at the room. The room was large and spacious. Comfy leather chairs and couches were nearby, and a polished oak table sat in the middle. Colourful flower sat in tall vases on top of doilies located on every table. The carpet under him was soft and gushy. The wall to his right was covered in framed photographs. "Er...," Harry began, at a loss. "The mirror!" he exclaimed as he glanced around the room for the mirror.

"I have a mirror out in the hallway, dear," the woman said with a confused expression on her face.

Harry stood and rushed out of the double French doors and into the hallway. He spied the mirror. It was oval and had a golden frame with flowers and vines engraved on it. It was not the mirror he wanted.

"Is everything alright, dear?" the woman asked from the doorway.

He snapped his gaze to her. "Where are the Death Eaters? Ron? Hermione? Neville? Luna? Ginny?"

She stared at him, her confusion evident on her face.

"I'm afraid I know no one by those names," she said slowly. "And I don't know what a Death Eater is… unless you mean Lotus Eaters, but I can't imagine why it would be so important to discuss ancient Greek myth when you just popped into my living room out of thin air."

Harry blinked at her. "Are you a muggle?"

"A what?" she asked with a frown. "Kids these days sure have strange slang."

That was when he noticed something else, her accent. "You're not British?" he asked with surprise.

"No, I am Canadian," she said slowly, "just like most people here, in Canada."

"I'm in Canada?" He asked, his voice laden with shock. _Wait, if I am in Canada, then the Ministry of Magic won't come Obliviate this Muggle, and I can't figure out how to get to my friends. Unless the Canadians have a Ministry of Magic, and they can send me home…_

"Are you alright?"

Harry jumped, his gaze focusing on the woman. "How come you aren't more surprised that I just appeared in your living room?"

"I'm used to people popping by for a visit."

"You know witches and wizards?"

"Uhh… The politically correct term is mages," the old woman said with a bemused expression. "But, I suppose your terminology reflects the archaic attire you are wearing."

Harry looked down at his Hogwarts robes and blinked. His robes weren't even a year old yet, plus they were his school uniform. He frowned and looked back up at the woman.

"You were looking for a mirror...," she began. "Oh dear… I think I know what happened… You must have gone through The Gate of Destiny… That would explain everything, but that also means your Keeper has fallen."

_Keeper? _"Ron?" Harry asked, his shoulders tense. "Do you know what happened to Ron and my other friends?"

"Goodness no," the woman said as she approached him, her grey eyes staring down into his. "One Keeper does not know the affairs of other Keepers."

Harry's mind drew up a picture of the old woman in front of him, dressed in Quidditch gear and riding a broom. He cringed at the thought.

"However—"

Her voice pulled him out of his imagination.

"If that mirror appeared before you, then it would imply that your Keeper has fallen and your world is in grave danger."

Harry started at her words as worry pooled in his gut. He needed to get back to the Department of Mysteries!

"I need to go back!"

The woman shook her silver-haired head. "I'm afraid it does not work like that. You see, in the event of a Keeper's destruction, that mirror will appear before the Guardian, and send him or her to another Keeper for training. That mirror will only reappear to you once you are ready to return to your world and restore order."

"What do you mean my world? England?" Harry asked.

"No, child. That mirror was the gateway to a world far different and far removed from yours. This world is not yours. While we do possess an England, it is not the same England that you know."

"How do I get back? My friends are in danger and I need to save them! It would be my fault if they get hurt!" Harry shouted; anger and worry chewed at his belly.

"I'm afraid they must save themselves until you are prepared enough to return."

"I am more than ready to go back!" He shouted, his hands curling into fists.

"You are not. You came here to learn, and learn you must, should you desire to return before the destruction of your world. However, your timing is most troubling…"

Harry glared at her. "What, I interrupted your afternoon tea?"

The woman frowned at him. "My, don't you have quite the snarky attitude. But no, that is not what I'm talking about. I was referring to the fact that this world's Guardian has been reborn recently, as this world is about to face its own destruction. I cannot split my attention between you two. If I neglect you, your world will perish. If I neglect her, this world will perish. The only way for this to work is if I place the two of you together…"

"Great," Harry said, his tone anything but pleased. "Let's do that, so I can get home faster."

"Patience… How old are you child?"

"Er.. Fifteen. Almost sixteen. Why?"

The woman sighed. "You are too old to pair you two up. The Guardian is nine years old, and will begin her training September 5th, which is just one week from today."

"One week?! But it was June when I fell into that mirror!"

"Time does not flow the same in each world."

Harry just stared at her.

"I'll have to change you into your nine-year-old self so that you may be placed with my Guardian. That way, you both maybe undergo the training and trials at Xion."

"Wait!" Harry exclaimed. "What? Why do I have to be nine? How are you going to make me nine?! What the hell is Xion?" He crossed his arms over his chest.

"As I just said, you will be nine in order to accompany my Guardian on her training. That way you too will receive the same training. You need to be nine as that is the age that one begins their tutelage at Xion Academy for Mages. Xion is a school where those with magic are taught to use magic, and to prepare them for their futures."

Harry blinked. _Sounds like Hogwarts_. "So what am I supposed to do?"

**HP-HP-HP-HP-HP-HP-HP-HP-HP**

Location: Conference Room Aboard the Forskirnis (**Siri P.O.V.**)

Her fingers drummed across the cool white metal table; its sound consumed in the din of the room. The meeting room was full. There were at least twenty people, like her, seated around the table, another two score more standing about the room, and all of them were visiting. A sigh escaped her lips. Her head dropped into the open palm of her hand while her elbow pressed against the metal, her fingers still drumming. Everyone around her was so loud. They were all visiting and gossiping amongst themselves. She just wished the damned meeting would start already, so that it could be over with, and she could return to the peace and quiet that was not this room.

"Crows feasting on your thoughts, Siri?" a cheerful voice to her side chirped in question. "If you keep grinding your teeth like that they won't last much longer. Then again, you are getting on in age now. I hear you made your thirty-fourth year."

Siri dragged her eyes from her drumming fingers and looked to the woman addressing her. The woman was tall, blond haired and blue eyed, and her bust size was greater than her intelligence. _Then again… most things are_. She had wedged her way between Siri's chair and the woman sitting to Siri's right side. Her hands were splayed across the surface of the table and the wench's breasts were all but thrust into her face. Siri was not amused. Pointedly, she ceased mashing her teeth and gave the woman a blank face. "What do you want?" She questioned. _Two can play at this._

The woman snorted, her eyes rolling in a way that was reminiscent of a horse. "Oh! Greetings, Helena! How are you? Oh, I'm just lovely, thank you for asking!" the younger woman said, her high voice glutted by sarcasm. "Would it kill you to act nicely?" she asked before an overdone sigh passed her thin and painted ruby lips.

"Yes," Siri responded curtly, wanting nothing more than to shut her up. _Could this get anymore tedious?_ She thought, hoping that the meeting would start soon, while images of her fingers curling around the woman's thin neck filled her mind.

"I don't understand, Siri, how a complete bore, such as yourself, was appointed to lead such an important operation. I mean… someone with a hint of charisma would have been the better choice," the wench said as she tossed her hair over her shoulder with a dramatic flair. _And that is why you weren't chosen._

Siri could feel her teeth grinding again. "I, Helena, was chosen above you because I know how to keep my mouth shut," she ground out through clenched teeth that made her jaw ache.

Helena opened her mouth. A scowl bloomed on her face.

"Sisters!" a voice cut over the racket, effectively silencing everyone throughout the room. Everyone turned to the owner of the voice.

Siri sat up straight. Her fingers stilled in their drumming, before she removed her hands from the table and set them calmly upon her lap. Her eyes darted towards the two open doorways at the other end of the triangular shaped room. Two women stood in the doorway, and they had everyone's undivided attention. Siri let her eyes wander over their forms.

The taller of the two, was of average build, her long golden hair pooled down her back and shoulders in perfect coils. Her skin was kissed golden by the sun, and her deep blue eyes surveyed the room. She was dressed in a full-body white leather outfit that clung to all her perfect curves like a second skin. White leather boots, with heels that Siri knew she would break her own ankles with, was up to the woman's knees. Her hands and everything above her collarbone was left bare. A small smile was curled on her lips. The lieutenant was always a stunning sight, but it was the woman to her left that demanded Siri's attention.

The second woman was petite by all definitions, standing a full head and shoulders lower than the lieutenant, looking more like a prepubescent teen than a woman of thirty-three, and if it had not been for the maturity of her facial features, many would mistake her for a child. Her hair was black as jet and cropped at the back to the nap of her neck, while the front was angled down at a sharp degree, with her bangs brushing her shoulders. Where the lieutenant was tanned, she was a milky white, and wore the same outfit. The only discrepancy between what the two new comers wore was the flowing crimson cape that was attached to the captain's shoulders with two golden circles that had an onyx and ruby spear dividing it in half.

"I thank you all for returning on such short notice," the raven haired woman began in a stern tone as she strode into the meeting room, her cape billowing behind her. She moved towards the empty two chairs at the head of the triangular table, her heels clacking away on the white metal floor. Lucretia followed the captain and they both took their seats. "Before we get to the matter I have recalled you all here for," she began as she placed her palm upon the table, "I would hear your status reports, my sisters."

Siri watched as a woman, Ericka, dressed in a black pinstripe business suit, who sat to the side of the captain, lean forward. "My team and I have integrated into our post successfully these past three years of our mission, captain. We have managed to prevent any and all suspicions upon us. Further, the three of us have managed to successfully eradicate nine prime targets. While I do wish that our numbers were higher, it has been challenging to remove so many talented individuals from under the noses of our enemies," she stated as she leaned back in her white chair, her eyes never leaving their commanding officer. "This is our most formidable foe yet, they are too numerous and too powerful to make a dent in without outing us as their enemies," she concluded with a frown. "Further, we have found no trace of the king or the traitor. I think it's safe to say they aren't within my area of infiltration," she added.

The captain, Eve, nodded her understanding before he gaze fell to Ericka's side.

"Captain, our situation has been similar. We've had a progressively difficult time getting close enough to cause any damage. Every time we eliminate one target, their defenses and suspicions multiply tenfold. Further, we have been unable to infiltrate the higher ranks, which makes information gathering difficult at best. However, I was able to ascertain that, despite the advanced information network available to these people, they are missing all the data from the first and second exploits of His Grace within this realm. Due to the newness of their networks, most old data is either missing or mixed with speculation," the sister began. "Further, the small amount of true data that has survived is highly fragmented and riddled with untruths that make the information seem little more than a fairy story. I think it is safe to say that not a single person here knows the truth." The woman leaned back into her chair with a light frown upon her aging features. "I did manage to come across one record that claims that the keeper died many years ago, but I cannot verify the validity of that."

"It is unlikely that he is dead. This lack of accurate data means that our enemies will be unprepared to deal with us at the very least. Should the keeper indeed be dead, than this incursion will be an overwhelming success. The first and largest threat to our enterprise is the three protectors of this realm. For the moment we shall not worry about them, but instead focus on the second threat, one that is no less troublesome," Eve stated as she looked around the room, her eyes locking with each seated woman's eyes for a second. Siri shivered as those eyes met hers. "While I urge you all to keep a look out for the three largest threats, I require all of you to diligently whittle away at the mass of their power. These are the strongest foes we have ever encountered, so it will not be surprising how difficult it will be to annihilate or assimilate their numbers to our benefit." She nodded at the next woman, to proceed with her report.

Siri tuned them out, as they regurgitated the same information to their captain with different words. The reports echoed along the chamber as each operation leader gave their reports until it was finally Siri's turn. Inwardly she cringed, hoping her report would be satisfactory. She cleared her throat. "Captain, lieutenant," she began, nodding her deepest respect towards the two women. "As is the case with my sisters, my team and I have been successful in our infiltration without suspicion. Further, over the five years we have been undercover, we have managed to decrease the numbers of dangerous individuals down. During our time there, sister Gunhild has dispatched of eight targets, Brynhild has rid us of five, while I have removed six," Siri paused. She knew all this data was no news to the captain and lieutenant, as she had regular report-ins from their undercover location. "Further, the three of us have devised a clever means to raise our body count exponentially this coming year. While I will not go into detail," _because you will all steal my idea and claim it as your own_, "I am certain that it will prove fruitful in our great mission."

She paused a moment, her eyes darting to the lieutenant's and then back to Eve's. "I did," she began slowly, "find something that may or may not be of interest," she trailed off.

"Well get on with it," Helena snapped at her.

Siri offered the wench a glare. "As you are well aware, I am stationed at Xion, and at Xion I overheard something that struck me as… off. I heard one of the staff members that teaches methods of foresight, telling the other two divination instructors of a vision she had. She described the vision as highly fragmented and making no sense. She first spoke of some girl and a book, of a great white tree that towered high as mountains, of a boy with a lightning bolt scar, and then of a man that she described as sounding much like Commander Kynan." She paused as she saw their Captain sit up straighter. This had happened since her last report-in to the captain.

"After that, she mentioned seeing a winged boy amidst a raging thunderstorm, before she described the All-Father's sigil in accurate detail." Siri's eyes darted to the two golden clasps holding Eve's cape in place. "The woman claimed the rest of her vision as too chaotic to see or interpret anything in. I am not sure what it means, but I think it is safe to conclude that she saw something relating to our mission."

The captain nodded her head sharply. Siri knew that this information was troubling, but she also knew that the woman had not seen enough to understand their purpose, nor to suspect anything about the mission. Either way, she wished she could see the vision for herself. _It would make far more sense to me, than to some in-the-dark fortune teller._

"That was all she said?"

Siri nodded, and her fingers began their drumming on her thigh.

The reports then continued, and once they had all been received, the captain stood and stepped behind her chair, resting her hand upon the cold back of it. Siri leaned forwards with anticipation, her fingers frozen mid-beat. Siri had a hunch as to why they had been called back for the first time since their appointment of positions for infiltrating the enemy strongholds. They normally used their communication devices to relay information to and from their base of operations. This was the first time Siri had been back in five years, and she just hoped the news was indeed what she thought it to be.

"Sisters, we have received news that captains Hekiah, Elkan, and Dane have all begun their voyage here," she said.

Siri felt excitement bubble in her belly.

"As you are well aware, they will not be here for some time yet, but the Commander, upon order from the All-Father, has decreed the time of our victory draws swiftly upon us. We will reclaim what is rightfully His, and the evil that here opposes us shall be shown no mercy; we take no prisoners," the captain stated.

_Finally!_ Siri thought. Five long years of true inaction had been irritating, but soon they would begin. _I understand the caution; this is the greatest foe we have ever faced. I will serve her well._

"Since the time is drawing near, you are all to heighten your efforts to prepare the way for the arrival of our brothers in arms," she gazed around the room, meeting the eyes of every operation leader.

As their eyes met, Siri felt a flutter shoot through her. The captain's eyes burned into her own, longer than all the others, and her heart thundered in her breast. She would do anything for the great Eve. _My plans will prove my worthiness to her_. She thought, just as the woman's eyes left her, pulling a piece of Siri out as they went.

"Go now, my sisters, in the names of the Chief and His Consort. Bring honour to our cause, for the time of cleansing shall soon be upon us."

Siri leaned back in her chair, watching as the captain spun, her crimson cloak surging out behind her as she stalked from the room, her lieutenant following. As soon as the two had left the chamber, a cannon of noise exploded in the room, the sisters all talked with burning excitement over the announcement. Siri knew it would be some time yet before the actual purge commenced, but just the news that it would soon commence had rekindled the passion and thirst for what was to come. She would serve well her captain. It was finally time for her to acquire the recognition for her devotion to their cause and to their great master.

"Evil will be purged yet," she whispered; her words were smothered by the excited voices. With a pleased grin, she set her palms upon the cool table, and pushed herself to her feet. She moved out from her chair and made her way through the chattering fools fluttering around the room. She had a new spring in her step as she stalked out of the meeting room with her two agents trailing silently behind her. Neither of them engaged the rest in idle chatter. She knew that the three of them had no need for words. After all, the real game was about to start.

**HP-HP-HP-HP-HP-HP-HP-HP-HP**

Location: Ivy's Bedroom (**Ivy's P.O.V.**)

The world was void of colour; white, black and the seemingly infinite shades of grey between were all that she could see. She knew this scene. She had seen this very scene played out a thousand times. She stared out over the dull edge of the cliff and into the thick fog beyond. There was no visible land ahead. Her eyes dropped to the dark and vast chasm that sunk below the cliff face, and she could not see a bottom; it looked like one could fall for an eternity and never reach bottom.

Ivy took a step back from the edge and turned around. The landscape of the cliff was flat, and composed of tiny speckles of white dirt as fine as sand. The flat land stretched on forever, disappearing into the sky, her eyes could not perceive the border between the two. Above her head, the sky stretched out in a pale grey, with neither moon nor sun to light the area, and yet she could see as though it were a cloudless day. She knew this place, but at the same time, she did not know this place.

She lifted her hands and stared at them. It was odd to see one's own hands void of all the spectrum of colour. Weirder yet, her hands were also much larger then she knew her own hands to be. The hands within the dream reminded her much of her own father's. The palm was wide and the fingers were long, and as she turned them over, on her right hand she spied the knotted scar that ran from the pinky-knuckle to the base of the thumb. She did not have the scar on her much smaller hands, but as she ran her left fore-finger over the lump, she could not help but think it real and familiar. _How can a scar I do not have be familiar?_ She pondered, just as she had pondered every time she saw the dream, and just like all the times before, she had no answer.

Around her right arm, from wrist to shoulder, and only on the outside of the arm, was a Roman manica. It was strapped firmly to her arm with leather straps, and each beaten metal segment of the armguard was overlapped by the one above it, giving her arm a metal-scaling that would aid in deflecting weapons. The metal was attached to thick black-dyed leather which was buckled around her arm at four points. The arm it was attached to, her arm, was not the arm of a nine year old girl, but the arm of a man well-honed by physical activity. The left arm did not have the manica, in fact, only a small pale leather cuff of three inches wide with thick laces encircled the wrist; the rest of her arm was only bare flesh.

Upon her torso and shoulders was a pale set of armour, much akin to the armguard, in that it was composed of layered pieces of metal, all of which was curved and flat to fit her body perfectly. From the bottom of the torso armour, starting about naval and continuing to mid-thigh was a skirt of chainmail, each link tiny and beaten smooth. Under the skirt, she wore a pair of leather pants that clung to her bottom and legs like thick and unbreathing tights. Atop these pants, both back and front, were latched pieces of metal, protecting her legs from the chainmail skirt down to her toes, leaving only the back of her knees plate-less, although a small segment of chainmail was placed there to offer minor protection. Upon her feet were leather boots with metal latched onto them.

With the gloriously smooth and light coloured cloak secured around her shoulders, she looked almost ready for battle. What she was missing, however, was a helm, and shield, and some sort of weapon. From going through her father's books, she knew that the upper half of her armour was very similar to those donned by the Romans somewhere in the first five hundred years of the Common Era. She had been unable to recognize the source of her bottom half in her father's books.

Ivy did not know why she was in the form of a man dressed in this armour, but she was filled with the desire to know. Letting her arms fall to her sides, she turned her head to the right. There, just like in all the previous dreams, stood the two massive white poles with its black inscription engraved upon it. Her feet brought her to the nearest pole, and she placed her palm upon the structure. It was neither warm nor cool to the touch, and the words that ran from top to bottom horizontally were in a language she could not read. She could not even identify the origins of the characters. She had once, upon waking, scribbled down fragments of the engravings on paper, and had asked her father if he knew the language, but he thought it was gibberish.

Ivy felt they were more than gibberish. Instinctively she knew that the answer to her dream was inscribed upon this and the other post, but she could not discern the meaning behind the etchings. If she could understand the writing, she knew she would understand the point to her dream. In every single one of her dreams within this landscape, she had tried to find the understanding of the writing, but she was no closer now than she was at the first time she had stumbled upon the dreamscape. _Dad said that reoccurring dreams are your subconscious trying to tell your conscious something, but what am I trying to tell myself?_ She did not know where to begin.

Her hand slipped slowly away from the post before her feet took her to the space between the poles where a long white rope and black plank bridge sat, spanning off into the fog over the gaping chasm. The bridge swayed back and forth on a steady breeze that did not touch her. She set one foot upon the bridge, before the other, her hands moving to clasp the two ropes that acted as both railing and as support for the lower planks. She could feel the bridge sway under her feet and, even though she could not see the bottom of the gorge, she felt her stomach in her throat. Her breaths quickened.

Ivy swallowed in an attempt to return her stomach to where it was meant to be as she put one foot in front of the other, sliding her hands around the rough braided rope. Her knuckles were pale as she clung onto the swaying bridge. The bridge shuddered under her every step, as though it were afraid. For every step she moved, her heart beat a hundred times in rapid succession, and she felt it would blast out of her chest long before she could get to the far side—not that she had ever made it to the far side in any of the previous dreamscapes.

She walked on and on, until the land behind her was devoured by the thickening fog. The wind howled and rocked the bridge, yet no wind touched her or so much as ruffled a hair on her head. She did not understand the bridge, but she wanted to know what was on the far side. _The answer may be there._

Ivy squinted as she spied the familiar dark silhouette of a very tall figure ahead upon the bridge; the figure was undisturbed by the rocking and swaying and howling, and it stood motionless like a shadow waiting. Unlike her, the shadow did not hold the railings. She stepped closer and closer towards it and just when she was close enough to try and make out the figure's features, her eyes opened. The dream had ended where they all had, just before she could reach the shadowy figure upon the bridge.

Yawning, she reached up and rubbed the crusts of sleep from her eyes. It was a bright and sunny morning; beams of sunlight trickled through the pale purple curtains and blinds on her bay window that she had forgot to close the previous night. The light stretched across her window seat, and over a portion of a massive tank, while the tail end of the beam kissed the corner of her lilac coloured bedding.

Ivy sat up and brought her hands up to look at them. Unlike in the dream, her hands had colour, albeit she was as pale as snow, but it still held colour. Her hands were tiny, just like the rest of her, and so very different from the body she wore within her dream. She cast off her blankets and crawled out of the queen-sized bed. Dreams were very different from reality.

After a dream with no colour, her room stood in startling contrast with its muted, yet still vivid colours. Her bedroom was a large one, much larger than her classmates' bedrooms, and she was willing to guess it was bigger than her classmates' parents' rooms as well. A plush white carpet spanned the floor, the walls were done in a shade of pale lilac, and the ceiling was as white as the floor. All her furniture was made of white wood, and pale purple dominated her room. Ivy loved everything in her bedroom, everything from the sheer lilac canopy draped over her bed, to the massive tank filled with trees, rocks, and water, to the many shelves stuffed full of books in every size and colour. It was her room.

Ivy walked over to the large tank and knelt at its side, the sunlight reflecting her face in the glass. She was pale, but even in her slightly distorted reflection she looked healthy. Her eyes were a wide blue-grey, more grey than blue, and her hair was a silvery blond that cascaded down her shoulders and back in lazy, but wavy ringlets that reached her lower back. She smiled at her reflection, before focusing her gaze upon the two moving creatures in the tank.

"Good morning, Jake. Good morning, Elwood," she whispered through the glass as she smiled at the two turtles. Jake and Elwood were ringed map turtles, a relatively rare type of turtle to keep as pets. Their shells were an olive brown and they both had yellow rings around each of their scutes. Jake was sitting on a rock, basking in the morning sun. Elwood, the smaller of the two, was stirring up the sand in the area of the tank with the shallowest water. She had talked her dad into letting her have the turtles when she was five, and she loved them even more now, four years later, then when she had first gotten the duo.

"Oi, Ivy!" a voice called through her bedroom door as a hand rapped on the wooden surface. A single bark echoed through the wood.

"Yeah?" she called back, her gaze drifting to the alarm clock on her bedside. It read 8:03.

"Dad says breakfast will be ready soon, so get your butt in gear!" her brother called back before his feet thumped along the hall, the sound of his dog moved with him, and silence descended.

Rolling her eyes at her brother, she stood and moved to her dresser, plucking off her pyjamas as she went, and leaving them in a trail from her bed to her dresser. She dressed herself in a pair of dark denim capris that had a purple flower stitched at the hem of the right leg, and pulled on a loose and flowing pale purple tank top that had a small string that she tied around her waist. Next, she pulled on a pair of white ankle socks before she closed her dresser drawers and moved over to her mirror vanity. From there, she pulled on a slim gold chain that bore a heart shaped locked, and fastened it about her neck. Next, she grabbed two black bobby pins and pulled her long bangs, which were parted on the left, to the right, and secured it there with the pins before tucking the strands behind her ear. After that, she put in a pair of gold studded earrings with purple sapphires into her ears. She then pulled a small golden bracelet with charms dangling from it, over her right wrist as she secured it with her left. She was ready for a new day.

She smiled at her reflection before she moved over to her bedroom door and opened it, stepping out into the hallway. The hallway was wide and long, composed of dark hardwood flooring, painted white ceilings, and muted brown walls. Both and hers and her brother's rooms were at the far end of the hallway, the two white doors. Ahead in the hallway were four more doors, two on each side of the hallway, but they were the same brown as the hardwood. One door lead to her bathroom, one lead to Hope's bathroom, one lead to their father's office, and the last lead to the smaller of the two guestrooms.

Ivy's sock clad feet made no noise upon the polished wood floor as she padded down the hall. The hall opened to a large living room and had a side hallway that led off to their parents' room and the other guestroom. She entered into the living room, and headed towards the stairs in the corner and descended the first set, before having to pivot on the middle landing and descended the final segments of stairs to the main level of the house.

She passed through the main floor living room, and moved towards the front of the house, where her bay window reading nook was situated. As she passed the area she deemed as her own, she glanced at the book sitting upon the small round table. Her blue-grey eyes remained upon the book as she descended the two steps into the front entry way, before turning down the hall. Near the end of the hall, at the glass doors that exited onto the deck, she turned left and entered into the small eating room.

"Morning, sweetheart."

Ivy glanced over the stool and tall seating that was propped against the half-wall dividing the eating area from the kitchen. "Morning, dad," she called back as she moved to the table, and sat on the blue cushioned seat of the bay window. "Did mom go to work already?"

"No. Your mother has today off for a change," he said as he walked from the kitchen and into the breakfast room with a plate and cutlery in one hand, and a glass of chocolate milk in the other.

Her father was a tall man of thirty-six. His silvery-blond hair, which she had inherited from him, was cropped short, and styled in a messy set of curls and spikes. His grey eyes were behind a pair of green framed glasses, and he had the beginning of laugh lines around his mouth. David Knight was dressed in a pair of casual jeans and a black t-shirt that read "Winter is Coming" in bold white letters. It was a shirt from one of her dad's favourite books, one that she had been deemed too young to read yet. _I'll read it when I am old enough._

Ivy watched as he set the plate and glass in front of her with a small smile on his face. Ivy smiled back up to her dad. "Thank you," she said before looking down at her breakfast. Her dad had made pancakes; hers were drizzled in strawberries. A wide smile split over her face as she picked up her knife and fork and began to eat with earnest.

"Since your mother has today off," he began as he set another plate and glass of chocolate milk to the seat beside Ivy, "that we would all do something together today."

"No can do, dad," Hope said as he skidded into the eating room and plopped himself down beside Ivy on the cushioned bench, pulling his plate of pancakes smothered with blueberries, closer to him. "I have a game against those jerks from Campbell, and I can't bail on the guys," he explained as he grabbed the container of syrup and drowned his stack of pancakes and blueberries in it.

Hope was sixteen and, like their dad, he was already tall, but still growing. His hair was blond, but a straight golden blond, unlike hers and their father's hair. He wore his hair slicked back, with a small chunk of his bangs remaining at the center of his forehead. His eyes were a bright blue. Ivy noticed that he was not wearing his black-framed glasses, but he could still see what he was doing. _Contacts_, she inwardly concluded. He was dressed in his soccer outfit, and had a hemp necklace tight around his neck.

"Isn't it off season?" their dad asked as he moved a third plate and glass to the table, before walking back for the fourth and final.

"The soccer season starts up soon at school, but we have to stay in top condition to kick butt. The only reason we have a game today is because they attempted to steal our field time on Monday. We are settling the fight over who gets the field at what times today," he explained as he shoved a large chunk of food into his mouth, making his cheeks bulge as he ate.

Their dad sat down. "I guess it will just be the three of us then, Ivy," David said with a smile as he took the syrup and drizzled a small amount on the top pancake.

"Morning," Ivy's mom greeted from the doorway as she walked into the eating room, and plopped down on her seat next to her husband. Their mother was an average height woman, with more of a ruler figure than a womanly build. Her golden hair was tossed up in a neat bun, and her bright blue eyes were behind her silver framed glasses. Her makeup hid the lines around her eyes and mouth, but Ivy knew they were there.

"Morning, mom," Ivy said, while Hope made some attempt at a greeting through his mouthful of breakfast.

"Morning, dear."

"Hope, don't talk with your mouth open," their mom chastised him as she picked up her mug of coffee, before taking a long dreg of it. "So, what is today's plan?" she asked as she set her mug down to butter her pancakes.

"The guys and I got a game against Campbell, so I'll be out. Afterwards, Jeremy and I are going to go to his place and play some games," Hope said before resuming his devouring of his breakfast.

The doorbell chimed. "Crap, that's probably Jeremy and Brandon, now!" Hope said as he shoved half of the remaining pancake into his mouth, before picking up the last half between his fingers as he stood and raced out of the room.

"Don't run!" their mom called out as she shook her head. "Teenage boys are difficult," she muttered before taking a sip of her coffee. "Ivy, you better not be as problematic as your brother," she said.

"Mom, dad! The guy at the door wants to talk to you!" Hope yelled from the front door.

Ivy watched her mother sigh and stand, arming herself with her mug of coffee as she stalked out of the kitchen with an irritable stomp. "I swear we raised a barbarian," she muttered as she walked into the hallway.

"We'll be back in a minute or so. Think about what you want to do with us today," her dad told her as he too stood and exited the room, abandoning his breakfast.

Ivy knew that if they were going out, that her mother would want to take her clothes shopping. She cringed at the thought as she stabbed a piece of strawberry on her fork and began to nibble on it. If she had to go shopping, she was sure that she could convince dad to go to a bookstore, and dad would convince mom. _I do want more books, I am almost done the book grandma gave me on Arthurian Legends_. _ I can handle clothes shopping, if I also get books._ She nodded to herself as she took a sip of her milk.

Ivy's right hand drifted up to her pendant as she continued to eat her breakfast. _Maybe we can go visit grandma today_, she thought. It had been sometime since she had last seen her grandmother, but the old woman did call once a week to check up on them. Ivy's grandmother would be seventy next year, but she was a very active widow. She was always baking, or out helping charities. She even did the occasional marathon that came to the Regina area. Ivy adored her grandmother, and her grandmother always doted upon her, giving her sweets, books, and other gifts. Ivy knew that her mother disliked that Viola Knight spoiled her, and not Hope. _Meaning I might not be allowed to go see grandma, because mom doesn't really like her_.

Ivy frowned down at the pancakes on her plate as her brother came back into the room, and picked up his glass of milk before guzzling it down. With a dramatic sigh of content, he placed the glass back down on the table. "The guys are here, so I'm out. Tell dad Ares is still in the backyard. Wish your favourite big brother luck," he ordered with a grin.

"Good luck, Hope," Ivy offered with a smile, as her big brother leaned down and placed a kiss on top of her head.

"Thanks, shrimp!" he called before moving out of the room, leaving Ivy alone yet again.

Ivy resumed eating her breakfast, pondering her latest read and all the stories that her grandma had told to her. Her grandma loved telling her stories, and Ivy loved hearing them. Sometimes, the two of them would act them out and have adventures together. Ivy smiled as she ate, reminiscing until her plate and glass were both empty.

The doorbell sounded again.

**HP-HP-HP-HP-HP-HP-HP-HP-HP**

Location: Outside of 313 Circle Drive (**Harry's P.O.V.**)

"Are you sure I have to do all this?" Harry asked as he ran a hand through his messy hair, while his gaze flickered from the large house before him to the silver-haired woman beside.

"Of course I am, Harry," she said. "Do you remember the rules I've set for you?"

Harry resisted the urge to roll his eyes. Viola had drilled the rules into his head constantly the last couple of days. "Yes," he said. At her look, he sighed before recounting them: "One: I do not tell anyone about being from another world. Two: I do not tell anyone about your abilities. Three: I do not tell the guardian about being a guardian. Four: I will stop being a worry-wart about things happening back in my world that are beyond my ability to do anything about."

"Very good," Viola said with a small smile. "Now, Harry, just remember, you are the son of an old friend who asked me to look after you while she is unable to do so."

"I got it." Harry said.

"Good. Make sure to repeat that and the rules every night before you go to bed… silently of course."

Harry nodded. The sooner he did this, the sooner he could go home. He just hoped that Sirius and his friends were alright, and that they managed to fend off the Death Eaters at the Department of Mysteries. An imagine of Hermione being hit by that unknown spell flashed through his eyes, followed by the brain's tentacles wrapping around Ron's arm, and Neville's face streaming blood from his nose.

"Alright there, Harry?" Viola asked; her voice and hand on his shoulder cut through his thoughts.

He nodded sharply, shaking the images from his mind. "I'm fine."

"If you say so," she said as she tapped the lock button on her car keys. They beeped, and the sound of clicking locks echoed behind him. "Let's go." She led the way up the concrete path to the house they had been standing in front of.

Harry watched as the woman walked forwards, and ascended the three steps to the front door before she pressed the bell. A dog barked. He could hear the faint echo of the bell resounding through the house as he came to a stop just off to the side and behind the old woman. Footsteps could be heard approaching the door, before two locks clicked and the door was pulled open.

"Mom!"

The man who had opened the door was very tall, his head just slightly below the top of the doorway. His hair was a silvery-blond colour that was short and a mess of styled curls and spikes. _I wonder if my hair could do that…_ He shook thoughts of his own ill-behaved hair aside, as he continued to look at the man. The man before him wore glasses with dark green frames. He was dressed in dark blue jeans, and a shirt with a weird sentence on it. He didn't understand what was so special about the coming of winter…

"Hello, son," Viola said as her son wrapped his arms around her in a hug. "Sorry for the surprise visit. I hope I didn't catch you all at a bad time."

"It's never a bad time for you, mum, but we do have… company here," the man said pulling out of a hug, just as another set of footsteps raced towards the door.

"Jeremy, Brandon, you guys are la— oh, hi Grandma," a teen said as he slid to a halt in the front entryway, just as the man released Viola from the hug.

"Hope, come give Grandma a hug," Viola said as she held her arms out.

Harry watched as a teenager with bad acne stepped outside the front door and hugged the older woman. He was blond, but the blond was more golden than the man's.

"Oh, and who do we have here?" the man asked.

Harry's eyes darted to the man, and realised that his question was referring to him.

"This is Lillian's boy," Viola said with a wave of her hand. "She is a good friend of mine. She asked me to look after him while she was doing a dig in Egypt. He is Ivy's age."

"Well, young man, my name is David Knight," he held out his hand.

Harry placed his hand in the much larger one and shook it, hating how small his nine-year-old body was. "Harry Potter," he said.

"Oh, are you British?" the teen asked.

Harry nodded. "I grew up in Surrey."

"Cool. I'm Hope," he said as his eyes darted to the street. "That's Jeremy's car! I'm out of here," he said as he grabbed a duffle bag he had by the door as he slipped on a pair of shoes. "Bye Ivy!" he shouted into the house before sprinting off. "Nice meeting you, kid!" he called at Harry as he moved towards his friends.

"So, you said you had company?" Viola asked as David ushered the two of them in.

"Yeah…," David said as he shut the door behind them. "Some sharply dressed man making claims about magic." David shook his head. "He was about to give an example before you rang the doorbell, so I had best get back there to see what tricks he is trying to pull. Harry, if you follow that hall and take a left at the end, you will find my daughter and some pancakes."

Harry glanced up at Viola who nodded. Harry slipped his trainers off his feet, and padded down the wooden floor of the hall. He was really curious about the magic visitor, but part of his deal with Viola was to watch over Ivy, Viola's granddaughter, and the guardian of this world. _She's just like me_, he thought as he walked, knowing he would do everything to help her. He knew how tough it was to be singled out to do strange things. He rounded the doorway and froze.

"Luna?!" he asked as he stared at the silvery-blond haired girl.

Wide grey eyes darted up and met his. "Umm… I think you have me confused with someone else," the girl said slowly.

Her face was different than Luna's. Her nose was smaller and her cheekbones seemed somewhat higher. Her voice was soft and gentle, like Luna's, but it was definitely not Luna's.

"Sorry, you just look like a girl I went to school with," Harry said as he scratched his head. _Of course it isn't Luna. Luna is from my world, not this one_. "I'm Harry, by the way, Harry Potter."

The girl tilted her head to the side as she looked at him.

He felt his cheeks grow warm at the unexpected examination.

"I'm Ivy Knight," she said with a smile. "It's nice to meet you. Was it you that just rang the doorbell?"

Harry nodded. "Yeah, I'm here with your grandma."

Ivy's face lit up with a bright smile. "Grandma is here?! Wait, why are you here with my grandma?" Ivy tilted her head to the side again.

"Erm...," Harry began. "Your grandma is looking after me while my mom is in Egypt on a dig. My mom and Viola are friends."

"Oh, that is cool!" Ivy said. "The Egypt thing, not the being left behind part though. Oh! Did you want pancakes?"

Harry shook his head. "No, thank you. Your grandmother made breakfast for me at her house. It was really tasty."

"Grandma is super good at cooking. So is dad, since grandma taught him." She stood and gathered hers and her brother's dirty dishes, before taking them into the kitchen and loading them into the dishwasher.

Harry trailed after her, watching as she loaded the dishwasher.

"So how long will your mom be gone for?"

Harry shrugged. "I'm not really sure."

"Ivy."

A voice from the doorway of the kitchen and into the hall called.

Harry watch as Ivy jumped and turned around, nearly falling off the stool she had climbed onto to wash her hands. Eyes wide, she looked to her father who was standing in the doorway to the kitchen. Ivy had not heard him approach, and neither had Harry.

She reached out, grabbed the towel next to the sink, and dried her hands. "Yeah, dad?" she asked before she put the towel back and stepped down from the stool.

"There is a gentleman that would like a word with you. Both of you actually, since mom mentioned to our guest that you were here too. Come on, kids," her father said, as he held out his hand.

Harry watched as Ivy tilted her head thoughtfully as she walked over to her dad and took his hand in hers, her blue-grey eyes falling to the hand in hers, which was just below her eye level.

Harry followed after them, wondering if he would have been as close to his dad if Voldemort hadn't killed his parents.

"Do I know the person?"

"No."

They turned left towards a living room, before hanging yet another left, and then a right into an office.

Harry filed in after David and Ivy, and he noted that a golden haired woman sat behind the large dark desk, and that the magical stranger was sitting in one of the black chairs in front of the desk. Beside the man, and in the only other chair, sat Viola Knight with a knowing smile on her face.

The man turned his head and smiled brightly, his teeth were blindingly white and perfectly straight. His long hair was black like a raven's wings and bound at the nape of his neck, and his eyes were a deep and dark brown that looked almost black. His skin was a deep olive colour. Upon his head sat a pair of black sunglasses. As the man stood, she noted that he was a full head taller than Ivy's father, and that he was dressed in all black. He wore black dress pants, and a black button-up-shirt. Even his tie was black.

"Good morning!" the man said as he looked at the blond girl. "You must be Ivy. His dark coloured eyes met Harry's. "And you must be our opportunely locate Harry." He said in greeting to both of them.

Harry looked at Ivy and met her eyes, before they both turned back to the man.

Ivy nodded. "Good morning," she greeted.

"Morning." Harry added politely.

"Ah! Where have my manners gone? My name is Sky Loyola. It is a pleasure to make your acquaintances." He took a few steps towards Ivy and offered his black glove clad hand.

Ivy reached out with her free hand and shook the stranger's, Sky's, hand. "It's nice to meet you too," she said with polite curiosity.

After their handshake, Sky offered Harry his hand, and he too shook it. "Pleasure," Harry mumbled.

The man released her hand and reached behind his back before holding out two thick, legal-sized, envelope to both of them.

Ivy stared at it.

_I'm guessing this is like Xion's version of the Hogwarts' letter…_ Harry reached out and took his envelop, and Ivy followed his example.

The envelope was stuffed full, but as Harry turned it over, he noted that it had no writing on it, and that it was well sealed. He ripped the deal open. The envelop was full of papers and booklets, each of different sizes and colours, and he slid out a small pamphlet from the group. The front had a large picture of a magnificent white stone castle surrounded by immaculate greens and courtyards, with people dressed in uniform meandering about. At the top, it read: 'Xion Academy for Mages'. The castle, from the photograph, looked far larger than Hogwarts, but the lack of movement in the photo left him staring at the image. _Magic photos don't move in this world_. He stared at it with surprise.

"Mages?" Ivy questioned aloud.

"Yes, it means that Xion is a school for people with the ability to use magic," the man, Sky, stated as he smiled down at her.

"Magic is real?" Ivy questioned.

Harry couldn't help but see the same doubt on her face that he had felt when Hagrid had told him that he, Harry, was a wizard. He smiled at the memory.

The man chuckled. "Yes. Magic is very real."

"So I say funny words, and poof, magic?" Ivy asked.

"Magic is more than words. After all, how can a language express something in its inexpressible truth? Magic is an element beyond us, so how can language, a human construct, truly express it?"

_Erm… Where's Hermione when you need her?_ Harry thought, before freezing as the last memory he had of Hermione was her being hit by that unknown spell in the Department of Mysteries, and how she fell with little more than a surprised 'oh'. His mood sank.

"Can you tell me… us… about… Xion?" Harry asked as he distracted himself from his depressing thoughts.

"Certainly. Xion Academy, known as the Frosted Rose Academy for the Gifted in non-magical circles, is a school that accepts any and all magical beings in Canada, and is situated in northern Saskatchewan. Students attend the academy for nine years and, upon graduation, they are prepared, more or less, to enter into many post-secondary magical institutions throughout Canada and the world.

_Post-secondary? Like university for witches and wizards?_ Harry wondered. He had never heard of such a thing back home.

"Xion is a boarding school, and so all students live in dormitories. The student population is divided into six groups. Students in years one through three are placed into one of two houses, those being Pixie and Nymph. Years four through six are likewise placed into two houses: Elf and Siren. Lastly, students in years seven through nine are placed in either Black Wyvern or Red Dragon. These divisions determine dorms, common rooms, and club or team activities. All like-year students attend classes together, so house placements do not affect classmates.

"Xion has thirteen core subjects: Potions, Morphology, Animation, Law, Summoning, Rituals, Magical Literature, Battle Magic, Spell Crafting, Herbology, Magical Beings, Divination, and Necromancy. These thirteen are compulsory classes for all nine years. However, in your fourth year, you may choose electives. The electives offered are: Duelling, Latin, French, Healing, Ceremonial Magics, and History. Electives are non-compulsory, and one is free to take as many or as few as he or she wishes. For every block of three years, you will have a different teacher for each class. I teach Potions to students in years seven through nine."

Harry felt his eyes go wide. Xion's classes didn't even sound close to what he was used to. _Potions, Magical Beings, Herbology, and Divinations are the only ones I have any real clue about. But Necromancy sounds like Dark Magic_. He frowned at the man.

Beside him, Ivy nodded slowly. "How do you use magic? I'm pretty sure I've never done magic, so how do you even know that I have magic? Mom, dad, and Hope do not have magic," she said, her gaze flickering over to her dad. "Do I get a stick and have to wiggle it around and mumble gibberish? Can you show me magic?" she asked.

"We do not use sticks, or wands, or staves, or orbs," Sky began as he pulled off the glove on his right hand. "Magic does need the necessary conduit to be used; however, we use metals and gemstones, in a ceremony known as the infusion ceremony. The infusion is where specific metals and gems are placed magically within the body, and they act as relays for your body to channel magic to and from your core, and out through a channel stone on your dominant hand," he explained as he held his right hand up, his palm towards her. On his palm was a rich red ruby that caught the light in the study.

"Wow," Ivy said as she looked at it.

Harry could not help but silently mimic her awe at the way magic was used in this world.

"Once a person undergoes his or her infusion ceremony, a magical grimmoire will materialize," he said as he reached behind him and pulled out a medium sized black tome. "The book is blank, but once you learn a spell, it will be recorded within the book. To use magic, one needs a combination of will and imagination, so that they can picture what they desire of their magic and manipulate their magics to grant it. Because it is dependant upon the individual, there is no single spell imagined or said the same way to get the same results. As an example:" he turned to the desk and poised his hand at it, "**Shackles undone, rise into the sky**," he stated clearly. On the desk, the papers stirred in a sudden breeze before they rose into the air, hovering on a conjured breeze.

"Cool," Ivy breathed, honestly impressed, as she stared at the papers. "I am so going."

Harry blinked at the strange display of magic. Maybe this would give him an edge against Voldemort.

"Ivy, honey, don't you want to go to school with your friends?" the blond woman behind the desk voiced.

Harry's gaze darted to the woman. He frowned.

"Mom, I don't have friends."

"What about that girl, Cassidy, she invited you to her birthday."

"She invited the whole class because her mom made her," Ivy responded. "The other girls don't like me because I'd rather read stories, and pretend to be on an adventure from a story, than play dress up, or talk about boys. The boys don't like me because I am a girl, and they think girls have cooties," she explained. "No offense, Harry." She gave him an apologetic smile.

"I don't think girls have cooties," Harry said with a small smile back at the girl.

Ivy nodded. "I want to go. I want to use magic. You always told me to use what gifts I have to the best I can; magic is a gift and I want to learn how to use it."

"Fine," her mother said, her tone sharp, indicating that Ivy's decision was all but fine.

Harry didn't like her tone. It reminded him of Aunt Petunia when she was telling him not to act so… freakish.

"If that is what you want," Ivy's mom said before she plucked up a ball from her desk and squeezed it until her knuckles turned white.

The Potions instructor glanced between Ivy and her parents, his face neutral as he pulled his glove back onto his hand. "If it would be alright with you, I'd like to escort Ivy and Harry to a magical district so that they may undergo their infusion ceremonies and collect all the materials needed for the school year. The school year begins in five days, so sooner would be wiser than later."

Harry watched as Ivy's father placed his hand on her shoulder and knelt down so he was on eye level with her. "You understand that this means everything in your life is about to change and that it will never be the same again?"

She nodded.

"And you are sure, without a single doubt in your mind that this is what you want, and that this is what is best for you? Remember, you are only nine."

"I am more sure of this than anything," she said quietly as she met her father's gaze. "I want to have my adventure, one that separates me from the pages I read. Please let me do this?"

He nodded his head.

She was going to live her very own story, and Harry was going to help her with it. He offered a bright smile to the girl, and was pleasantly surprised when she returned it.

**HP-HP-HP-HP-HP-HP-HP-HP-HP**

Well, that is all for my opening chapter. Hopefully those of you who made it to the end found it acceptable enough. This was just an experiment, as most Harry-goes-to-another-universe/dimension features a verse more intimately related to the Harry Potter series, and I felt I would try a dimension unlike the Potter-verse. Any thoughts or comments are welcome. Thank you for reading!


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Harry Potter, nor anything from or pertaining to the Potter-verse; they are the property of the brilliant J. K. Rowling.

**Warnings:** Mature Content, Graphic Language, Explicit Scenes, and so forth.

**Pairings:** Undecided as of yet. Suggestions may be considered.

**HP-HP-HP-HP-HP-HP-HP-HP-HP**

**The Power He Knows Not**

Chapter Two: A Whole New World of Magic

Location: The Cherry Grove Magical District (**Harry's P.O.V.**)

Harry and Ivy walked through the door that Sky had opened for them and entered into the well-lit shop that was coloured by hundreds of rainbows caused by the reflections off the myriad of gems and hunks of metal that sat in bins on the many shelves throughout the store. He couldn't help but wonder if vaults in Gringotts possessed treasures like this.

"Do I need treasure to bypass a dragon?" Ivy asked as she looked at all the shapes of jewels and metal that she could see.

Harry blinked at the question. He didn't think treasure would work on dragons—or at least not on the type he was used to. His mind flashed back to the first task of the Triwizard tournament and the Hungarian Horntail that he had to get passed.

Their escort snorted with amusement, pulling Harry from his flashback. "You are a 'Knight,' but not a knight in shining armour. It would be cruel to pit such a fair young maid against a dragon even armed with this much treasure," he said.

Harry rolled his eyes.

"Does that mean that, if I were a boy, I would have to face a dragon?"

"Not at all. We wait until boys grow into men and are fully trained before we allow them to face off against a dragon for their fair maid's hand. Mind you, we are in short supply of dragons since they became extinct many centuries ago, so I suppose men shall have to substitute a real dragon for some foe that hinders their quest to woo fair ladies," he replied with a wink as he guided them towards the counter at the back of the shop.

_No dragons…? _

The counter sat neatly between two closed doors. "All jesting aside, we are here for your infusion ceremonies." He paused. "Popular culture would have you believe that waving a stick imbued with some magical ingredient would work all sorts of magic. That is not the case; our reality requires an infusion of metals and precious stones that resonate with ambient magic, and thus allow us to access and channel the magic located within our cores, and then use it to manifest our wills."

Harry wished he didn't have to leave his wand with Viola, but if he used the silly stick imbued with magical ingredients then he would have more questions on his hands that he was supposed to answer. He didn't want to screw up his only way home.

They stopped at the marble counter that towered slightly above both his and Ivy's head. He was glad that Ivy was as short as he was. He missed his height that he had lost when Viola deaged him from his almost sixteen years to the body of a nine year old.

"Earlier, back in mom's office, you used a spell."

"Correct and incorrect. The notion of spells that you are accustomed to via multimedia presents the concept of spell casting to be the utterance of a specific word or a series of specific words that possess a universal result when cast properly. In reality, spells, while spoken, are a means of concentrating one's will, mind, and magic together, which means that the words one says are dependent on the individual, not the actual spoken words."

"So I could say 'up', while you say 'fly', and the action, dependent on how we picture it, could have the same results?" Ivy said.

"Correct. You caught on very quickly."

Harry frowned. This form of magic was much different than he was used to… _I wonder how the spells I know would react with this different magic system…? Or would I still mostly operate on the magical methods I'm used to? 'Mione would know_.

The door to the right of the counter opened.

"Oh quit your blubbering," a woman chided as she exited the back room, dragging a sobbing girl behind her. The woman was dressed in a crimson business suit-skirt ensemble, with high pointed crimson heels, a white clutch purse, and lips so red, they looked to be bloody. Her brown hair was tossed up in a stylish twist, and her irises were as red as her lips.

Harry had to do a double-take when he noticed her eyes. He felt his mouth hang open with surprise. _Is she a vampire, or something?_

The girl being dragged had the same colouring and features as the woman, but she was dressed in blue jeans and a pastel pink hoody. Tears cascaded unstopped down her cheeks as quiet hiccup-sobs escaped her lips.

Behind the girl came an onyx haired young man, whose hair was messily spiked in all directions. He was dressed in a pair of stylishly torn and white-washed jeans. His leather belt bore a buckle with the side outline of a woman who was posed in a reclined position with one leg in the air, and a multitude of silver chains dangled from various points on his belt. His top was a wrinkled white dress shirt with two buttons at the top and three at the bottom undone. The shirt was rumbled, and had the sleeves pushed up to the elbows. He wore a black choker with a silver cross, a myriad of different rings decorated every finger, and several sets of earrings were in each ear.

If Harry had to describe the man in one word, she would have chosen 'cool'. He watched as the man moved behind the counter, while the woman and crying girl moved to the free spot on the customer side of the counter. Harry's eyes briefly met puffy and tear filled eyes before the girl snapped her head to the side.

"Today's total is an even $ 1,500.00."

Harry's jaw hung open again at the price. That was incredibly expensive and he could not help but feel guilty that Viola said she would pay for the things he needs for Xion.

"That's highway robbery!" the woman in red said as she released her grip on the girl and snapped open her clutch. "When I was a girl, this cost about a third of the price you are asking," she added as she pulled out her faux red-leather wallet. From the wallet she plucked out a credit card and slapped it down on the counter.

"Inflation tends to do that to the value of things. Also, if it weren't for the government providing funding for all children in need of an infusion, you would easily be paying three times the current price," the young man explained with a cheerful smile as he slid the card towards himself.

Harry watched—as best he could from his vantage point—as the man poked at the counter top. He started slightly as a round disk suddenly floated to a foot above the counter. He flinched as a green beam of light appeared beneath the disk—it was the same green from his earliest dreams about his parents, and the same green that the killing curse emits before it snags its victim unobstructed. He swallowed thickly as he continued to watch as the employee slid the card into the green light, and the card shot up and hovered in the center of the light. He tapped the counter several more times and the light turned neon blue.

Transaction complete, the card was plucked from the beam and returned to the woman. She made all haste in securing her card before stalking from the store with the girl in tow. As soon as the duo had vacated the store—to the cheerful farewells of the shopkeeper—Harry and Ivy turned their attention to the young man and found him looking between the two of them.

They both started with surprise.

"The name's Ethan: welcome to Sylvan's Infusions," the man, Ethan, greeted.

"Thanks, I'm Ivy Knight."

"And I'm Harry Potter."

"Well, Ivy and Harry, are you both ready to begin your infusion ceremonies?" he questioned with a bemused expression as he smiled up at their escort.

"I am," they said at the same time before exchanging amused looks with the other.

The crying girl had left him apprehensive about the ceremony, but he needed the infusion to access magic without raising questions about why and how a magical wand worked for him. He really needed and wanted to have his magic back.

"You sound brave," Ethan commented as he offered both of them a Cheshire grin that displayed his straight white teeth. "The first part is painless," he began as he reached under the counter and pulled out a clear softball sized orb of glass, and offered it to Ivy, before he pulled out a second orb and handed it to Harry.

Harry took his orb, and was instantly reminded of the orb he had used to tell Trelawny about Buckbeak's freedom during his Divination examination in third year. The orb was much heavier than it looked; he had nearly dropped it when he took it. It was cold like the Gryffindor dorm's windows in mid-winter. His green eyes stared at the ball, before straying to his reflection and through it as he opted for a puzzled frown. _Do I need to see what I need?_ His eyebrows rose as soft puffs of clouds materialized and formed at the heart of the orb.

"It's begun," Ethan said.

Harry glanced at Ivy's orb and noticed it was doing the same as his own before he glanced back to the shopkeeper. He paused his question of 'what has begun', when he noted Ethan was not looking at the orb, but behind them. He turned, and his mouth dropped into the 'oh' of surprise.

In the rows and shelves of bins heaped full of treasure, jewels, and bars of metal were pulling free and hovering above their bins. Once items had ceased rising, they flew at a leisurely pace towards them, circled either him or Ivy, before landing silently in two separate piles on the countertop.

"Neat," Ivy said as the last piece settled.

Harry could only nod in his agreement. He loved magic.

"Very neat," Ethan said with a wink. "Even neater than that is both of your arrays of magic-synchronization materials," the man said as he eyed the assortment on the counter. He glanced up. He smiled at them. "The assortment of precious stones and metals are unique to each individual. The numbers, cut, clarity, quality, and so on, corresponds directly to every person.

"The orb senses your magic, and then calls forth the materials best suited to it. For you, my dear, it called an amethyst, lapis lazuli, diamond, white quartz and an onyx stone for your gems. For your metals, you have an unusual number. Most have one and occasionally two, you, however, have three," he paused as he placed his hand on top of the metal bars. "This is platinum, titanium, and lastly an incredibly rare metal known as adamantium. I have never done an infusion with that last one and I doubt my father or even his father before him have used it in an infusion."

"And you, young man, have another peculiar and rare assortment here. Your gems are the diamond, onyx, emerald, and ruby, while you metals are the same as the young lady's. This is super cool!" Ethan admitted as he tapped at the silvery-purple metal bars that were in both piles.

"Now what?"

"Now you follow me into the back for your infusions," the man stated as he grabbed two baskets and scooped each pile of materials into a separate basket before he walked towards the door he and his last customers had come through.

Harry followed Ethan as the man guided the three of them into a back room. Once in the dark room, Sky closed the door leaving them in complete darkness, before firelight blared to life at the far end of the room, startling Harry. A second fire flared to his left and then a third to his right and lastly, one right next to the door. Through the firelight, he noticed that the room was done in white marble panels that were streaked through with black veins that sparkled in the flames. The center of the room had a large circle indentation that was about a foot deep.

The circle was surrounded by twelve pillars that were slightly taller than she, and atop each pillar stood a clear chalice. "Ladies first, Ivy, so I need you to go to the center of the circle," Ethan's voice cut through their observations.

Harry watched Ivy nod before she moved into the circle. She watched quietly with her head tilted to the side as Ethan placed each stone and bar into a different chalice before he removed a vial from his belt and poured a golden liquid into the remaining empty chalices.

"What is that liquid?" Ivy asked.

"This is a fusion stabilizer. It is a potion that helps the materials properly synchronize with the body. Never has any individual possessed more than nine materials for their infusions. There are twelve chalices because everyone requires at least three chalices worth of this substance to aid this process. Since eight items have been chosen for you, this shows that you require one chalice of this substance extra to accommodate the infusion," he smiled at her as he filled the last chalice and replaced the stopper on the vial. "It is quite normal for extra chalices of it to be needed."

"Okay," Ivy said.

"Are you ready? This will hurt some," Ethan said.

Nodding, Ivy looked at the man with determination.

_She would have probably been a Gryffindor had this been my world._

"Good," Ethan smiled. "I call upon the elements of old and new and of greatness magic imbued; of Earth and Wind, of Water and Fire, of Light and Dark, of Plant and Blood, and of Life," he incanted, his words echoing loudly in the chamber. The twelve chalices began to give off a light reminiscent of the material within. "I call you and all your children forth to invoke the ceremony of infusion." Each item within the chalice suddenly melted into a glowing liquid that swirled restlessly within each chalice. "Grant this child, Ivy Knight, the gift of her magic!" Ethan called loudly as he wiggled his fingers with a grin on his face.

The symbols on the floor began to shimmer and a blue-white light shone all around her feet. Wide eyed, Ivy watched as each chalice lifted into the air before tipping and spilling its liquefied contents onto the pillars. Fascinated, Ivy stared as the liquids pooled at the top before flowing to the nearest edge of the pillars to her. In a show of pure magic, the liquids snaked down the pillars in a spiral motion before plunging into the glowing cracks of the symbols. As the liquids moved, their light replaced the blue-white until, suddenly all the liquids were upon her.

They crawled up onto her like coiling snakes, their touch as ice. A sharp sting ran around her ankles and she fought to not flinch away; another sharp pain bit through her thighs, then her wrists leaving her wanting to cry in pain. Something molten splashed across the left side of her chest, constricting her airway just as her left hand felt as though it was suddenly pierced. She opened her mouth to scream, but before the sound could escape her all the pain was gone, leaving only a tingling sensation where there was once pain. The lights of the ceremony faded.

Legs suddenly weak, Ivy fell down onto her butt with a quiet oomph.

"Strange experience isn't it?" Ethan said as he walked over to her and knelt down. "I'm impressed you didn't scream, most do," he added as he held out a hand to her.

"That was…" Ivy began only to trail off at a loss of words of how to explain it. Shaking her head to steady herself, she reached out and took his hand with her left one. She was pulled back to her feet and her hand released. She looked at her left hand, the one that had hurt so much during the ceremony. She started. On her palm was a spiral of gold and blue stone. She flexed her hand, surprised that the stone moved as though it was her flesh and not solid. Curious, she poked at the spiral with her other hand and was surprised to note that it was cold and firm against her finger. "Weird…," she breathed in surprise.

"It takes some time to get used to the results of the infusion," Ethan said with a smile, cutting into her observations.

Ivy looked up at him with her pale eyes wide.

"That is to say, that the infusion often leaves more than one mark upon the body. When you get home, look yourself over carefully. Anyways, your turn Harry."

Harry moved over to the space recently vacated by Ivy, his belly a coil of serpents. Up close to the infusion area, he saw that the interior of the circle was carved with symbols and lines and swirls that meant nothing to him, but he figured they were more than decorative. Further, he noted that similar etchings lined the twelve pillars surrounding the ceremonial circle.

Ethan walked around Harry, placing his materials into the chalices, before adding potion to the remaining ones. "Ready?"

Harry nodded.

"I call upon the elements of old and new and of greatness magic imbued; of Earth and Wind, of Water and Fire, of Light and Dark, of Plant and Blood, and of Life," he incanted, his words echoing loudly in the chamber. The twelve chalices began to give off a light reminiscent of the material within just as it had done with Ivy. "I call you and all your children forth to invoke the ceremony of infusion." Each item within the chalice suddenly melted into a glowing liquid that swirled restlessly within each chalice. "Grant this child, Harry Potter, the gift of his magic!"

The liquid teemed within each chalice before spring up into the air and forming a dome like cage about him. A phoenix song rang through the back room, soothing his worries before the molten liquid rained down upon him and slipped into his skin. He grit his teeth as heat encompassed his flesh and stabbing pains took over his right palm and along his back. It didn't hurt as much as being submitted to the cruciatus curse, but it still hurt.

As soon as it began, it ended, and Harry found himself breathing heavily where he stood.

"Well… that's never happened before," Ethan said.

Harry looked over at the man, doing his best to supress a groan at how weird things always seemed to happen to him.

"Don't worry, magic is always full of surprises," Ethan said with a shrug before he ushered them to the front of the shop.

**HP-HP-HP-HP-HP-HP-HP-HP-HP**

Location: Cain's Bedroom in the Silverwynd Estate, Alberta (**Cain's P.O.V.**)

_He stalked through the hall with his jaw tilted up. His metal-sheathed leather boots clacked like thunder against the crimson and gold marble that lined the floor, ceiling, and walls of his father's throne room. The room was magnificent; spiralling pillars arched up to the ceiling far overhead, where shimmering lights dangled in crystals that illuminated the intricate design; black silk was draped on and between each pillar; gold accented nearly every surface, causing the room to glimmer in the crystal light. At the far end of the chamber, where the farthest wall was missing and brilliant grey light shone through, was a raised nine-step dais. Atop, on the platform, sat two great onyx thrones, both of which he knew bore the elaborate engravings that depicted his father's many exploits. Mounted to the top of the back of both seats were two great rubies that were roughly the size of his fist. Coiled like serpent, that bound the ruby in place, were black obsidian barbs; they were as crude as they were sharp._

_ White-grey light oozed in from the open archways behind the masterly crafted thrones from his father's veranda where his father could gaze out over all his dominion. The light and the position of the thrones cast the two figures seated upon the regal chairs into shadows that his eyes could not penetrate. With several more measured strides forwards, he lowered himself swiftly to one knee and planted his fists firmly on the chilled marble. He lowered his head with reverence and gazed upon a vein of gold that shot through the crimson stone. "You summoned me, Father?" he stated in question, his voice deep and booming, and the sound carried through the hall and all those that silently stood by lining the walls._

_ "Yes. I have a task for you, my son," his father thundered from his throne. "The alliance formed thirty-two millennia ago has ended. Through mutual disagreement, our five powers have determined that the issue may only be resolved through war. Your duty, my son, is to command my armies against our enemies. Who so ever is the victor shall be the faction that claims dominion of the domains of the fallen! Bring me this victory, son."_

_ He could feel his heart hammer in his chest. _War? How can there be war? _He lifted his head from its bow, and clashed his fist against the metal armour plating his chest. "As you so command me; I shall bring honour and victory to you, and death to our enemies!" he vowed, his voice like a whip upon the silent crowd. _

_ "Honour! Victory! And Death!" the call rose up from the spurred assembly. The men and the women giving their voice the chant that echoed like a tempest, before falling silent with suddenness. _

_ One of the seated figures stood, his form silhouetted by the light behind him. "To grant strength and power to you, I have a gift," he spoke as he grabbed a great spear from its position propped up against his throne. He lifted it, and struck the butt down against the floor like a blast of thunder that echoed in the chamber. A set of double black golden doors opened noisily at the summons._

_ Through the golden doors emblazed with the crest of his father's house, marched two men, and they dragged a third and much smaller figure between them. He instantly recognized the two soldiers as captains from his father's personal guard. They both wore their oblivion-black armour chestplates that looked to be a sculpted replica of a well muscled-man's torso, which was engraved with runic symbols and swirls of crimson and gold. Their greaves, legplates, and gauntlets all matched the chestplates in colouring but, unlike the chestpieces, they were not forged to look like the flesh beneath, thus they were many smaller plates attached together to allow for movement. Secured around their waists by a golden belt emblazoned like the doors, were triple-layered skirts of boiled black leather done in two inch-wide strips that went to mid-thigh and near the base of each strip the black bled to crimson, while each end was sealed by an intricately crafted golden decoration that clanked noisily against the others. Held in place by ruby-bearing golden circles, were their black silk cloaks with gilded ends that trailed and dragged behind them across the floor with a whisper. Atop their heads were black helms done in the likeness of a wolf's head, where the fanged maw served as a visor. In their free hand, they both carried great golden lances with black metal blades at the top, and a crimson sash tied below the blade._

_ For only the moment of a heartbeat did these captains hold his attention. His gaze was drawn, as moth to flame, to the sobbing figure being dragged between the men. Their prisoner was a girl of few seasons; she was closer to flowering than to infancy. Her garments were filthy and torn, and they covered little. What he could see of her flesh was crusted by filth and blood, and the patches where he could see through the grim, he spied motley of bruising. Her raven hair was matted in clumps, while chunks were missing and had left only bloody scabs in their wake. It was, however, her eyes that turned his own flesh to ice. They were wide, accented by dark lashes; the eyes were a rich blue-green, and they were filled with terror and anguish. Tears carved clear tracks through the film of filth of her face. That look did not belong in a child's eyes._

By my father! What evil is this? _He pondered, his heart beating its frozen tempo. He swallowed hard. _

_ "This is another spawn of Re-Horakhty. We… acquired her during the annual Sun Ceremony where the alliance treaty was shattered. Son, bring me her heart." His father ordered._

_ His back went rigid where he knelt. Gooseflesh rose on his arms and neck. A chill coursed down his spine. "She is a child," he spoke, his horrified words escaping his mouth before he could catch and smother them. "But a child of our enemies," he quickly added to hide his blunder from the court. He would not, could not, defy his father, especially before those gathered within the throne room. "As such, I am deeply honoured to deliver her heart to you, father," he announced, his face blank and calm despite his inward quivering. He knew no child, not even this child of the enemy, deserved what he needed to do. _To oppose father would be my demise alongside hers. _His father's will was law. _

_ He slowly stood. His knees trembled beneath his armour as he sought to steel his resolve. His right index finger nervously caressed the blue-silk wrapped handle of his great war-hammer secured to his belt. Drawing in a slow breath, he removed his weapon from his side before lifting it high into the air. _I must do this. _He would take no pleasure in this grim execution._

_ "Mercy!"_

_ His eyes met hers; her face was crinkled with horrified desperation. _

_ "Pl… Please! Mercy! I… I beg you! Please!"_

_ Her words struck heavier than any blow he had been dealt before. He struggled not to stumble backwards, and it was stubbornness alone that kept him rooted. He stood immobile for a moment. "Forgive me," he whispered, careful so that only the girl would hear his plea. He let his arm fall with all his strength, driving the blunt face of his hammer down against her head with a squelching crack that showered him in hot blood and gore._

Agony! A shrill sound tore through his throat as he thrashed beneath the blankets binding him to his bed. It hurt! Everything hurt! Pain like molten knives peeling his flesh from his muscles, his muscles from his bones, and his organs from their homes, coursed through his body.

Cold hands ran along his heated flesh, seeking to sooth his burning body. Whispered comforts entered into his ears over the shrillness of his own cries, while gentle but firm arms scooped him tenderly into a calming embrace, and rocked him back and forth. It took a while, it always did, for the electrical agony to recede incrementally from his system. Only when a throbbing ache was all that remained of his pain, did he crack his crusted eyes open to meet the sad frosted-green eyes of his father.

"Cain, do you want to talk about it?" the man questioned quietly, his large hand squeezing his smaller hand in a show of fatherly comfort.

The muscles in his hand twitched in a weakly returned squeeze, before he shook his head. His throat hurt from screaming. Even if his throat had not been sore, he still had no desire to share his latest nightmare. The girl's eyes flashed in his mind, and his vision blurred through his silent tears that fell freely down his face.

"Oh, sweet heart," his mother said sadly as she kissed the top of his sweat damped head, while she continued to rock him back and forth. "We will find a way to fix this," she promised—just like she always promised, but to no avail despite her earnest attempts. He was growing weary of this. Doctors, neurologists, and psychologists had all been baffled by his condition. When they had been unable to identify or even formulate a plan to counteract his affliction, they often accused him of faking it all for attention. He had never once faked this curse. He did not know how or why his nightmares activated his bloodline curse, not even the specialists had answers. He had to suffer and endure the agonizing curse of his kind through dreams; these dreams plagued both his sleeping and waking mind. They were inescapable.

"Do you want some breakfast, kiddo?"

He shook his head again; the thought of food made him queasy. His affliction often caused him to feel nauseous at thought of food, and he knew he ate far less than was healthy. Cain pretended not to see the look his parents exchanged over his refusal for food. He felt guilty enough over having never been a normal kid, but he felt worse for it from all the pain his condition caused them, and for all the worry his failing appetite was generating. _They deserve a better son than me._

He could not wait for the new school year to begin. Once he returned to school, his parents no longer had to see his fits, nor would they have to see his limited consumption of food. While he had no friends at school—after all, who wanted to be friends with the guy who often slipped into a dazed state before, more often than not, suffering a violent fit? No one wanted that. Well, he was not entirely certain that Apollo or Riley were sane, as they tended to stay by his side. Then again, their friendship might have just been pity. He was not sure. Friends or no friends, he still wanted to return to school, the one known place to possess an area where he had never once had a fit: the library.

The school library was the only location where his curse failed to show its ugly head, and only there could he function as a normal person. It was his sanctuary. His study periods, free periods, his evenings, and his weekends were all spent within the library. He had even joined the Book Club so that he could spend some of his mandatory club participation time within his safe haven.

"Sweet heart?"

His mother's voice started him from his thoughts with a jolt. "Yeah, mom?" he voiced, his words hoarse.

"Since you are awake, shouldn't you let your wings out? You do not want them to cramp do you?" she half-asked, half-suggested.

Cain knew that his mother had a point. With the residual phantom aches of his mysterious affliction, he did not want or need any added pain. He nodded before untangling himself from his mother's gentle arms, and shuffled away from his parents. He pulled off his sweat soaked blanket, followed by an even more sodden t-shirt that he had slept in, before he shut his eyes in concentration despite the sudden chill his newly exposed and damp flesh felt. It took a moment for a tingling sensation to spear and crawl along his back before centering on two spots. A burst of freedom encompassed him, and he reopened his eyes.

Across his room, he spied his pale reflection in a mirror. With his wings out, it was impossible not to tell what he was. Upon his back were a pair of shimmering white feathered wings that shot up behind him. While they were decent in size, they were still a year or two away from the point he could use them to fly. Flight or no flight, he was still, obviously, a member of the ancient race of the Angels.

**HP-HP-HP-HP-HP-HP-HP-HP-HP**

Location: Ivy's Bedroom, Regina (**Harry's P.O.V.**):

Harry sat on the edge of a soft and large bed covered in pale purple blankets. Today was the day that he and Ivy were going to Xion, and he felt as excited about Xion as he did about Hogwarts. Since there excursion to the magical district, Harry and Viola had remained with the Knight family, staying in two of the guestrooms that the large house possessed. During that time, he had managed to begin a tentative friendship with the guardian of this world, Ivy. At first, he had mistaken the blond for Luna Lovegood, but over the last couple of days he realised that the eccentric nine-year-old before him was more like a combination between Luna and Hermione.

To him, Ivy looked similar to Luna, but she was also… odd. He had no other word for it. She seemed to be very mature, but she was enthralled by stories of strange things and creatures. However, she also reminded him of Hermione because she was smart, smarter than smart, and she had a fondness for books that would rival Hermione's. Ivy was still different than Hermione as the blond preferred fun books over educational ones, the opposite of Hermione who always seemed to be reading something of a practical nature.

"It's kinda weird, huh?"

Harry's head snapped up and landed on the subject of his thoughts.

"Huh?"

Ivy toyed with the hem of her skirt from her position in front of the full-length white oval frame mirror. "The uniform," she clarified. Ivy was dressed in her new school uniform. Her uniform consisted of a white short-sleeved button-up dress-shirt, a black blazer with white trimmed edges, a white silk tie, a pleated black skirt with white trim that ended an inch above her knees, a pair of knee high white socks, and a pair of black leather boots covered in straps and silver buckles, that had a slight heel and ended just below her knees.

"A bit," Harry admitted. He was so used to Hogwarts' robes that he had stared at himself in Xion's uniform for quite some time earlier that morning. His uniform was almost the same as hers, but where she wore a skirt, he wore dress pants, and his boots were without the slight heel that hers had. "But… it seems easy to move in and is rather comfortable."

Ivy nodded her head before fiddling with her braid which had a glimmering purple ribbon woven into it.

Harry shifted his gaze from her to his right hand. On his palm was a lightning bolt shaped ruby that shone fiercely in any light. He flexed his hand. His eyes told him that the gem was there, but as he moved his hand, he could not feel it. He brought his left index figure to brush against the warm and firm gemstone, and he could feel it with that hand, and yet it did not affect the use of his dominate hand. Though he missed the holly and phoenix feather wand that had saved him from his previous encounter with Voldemort, he knew he would never need to use it to wield magic.

The sensation he had felt when the infusion took hold on him was as euphoric as the day his wand had first chosen him, and the phoenix song that echoed prior to the infusion reminded him of Fawkes and of the joining of brother wands in battle. He twisted his hand under the sunlight, staring at the ruby that shone just like the philosopher's stone in his first year.

A knock sounded at the bedroom door.

Harry looked up and spied Hope staring at Ivy.

"Look at you being all pretty! I'm not sure I like my pretty little sister leaving for a co-ed boarding school where I can't scare off all the boys." He rested his shoulder against the door frame with his arms crossed before his eyes met Harry's. "You better not try to date my baby sister."

Harry cringed. "I have no intensions of ever dating your baby sister," he admitted. The thought made him feel nauseous. He may look like he was nine, but he was a sixteen (or so) year-old who had zero interest in kids. Even the thought of them together in that way made it feel like he had swallowed a whole tub of slugs.

"Good. Then I, as her older brother, grudgingly charge you to keep any and all suitors away from Ivy."

"I'm way too little for you to worry about me and boys, Hope," Ivy chided. "Besides, I'm going to learn how to use magic, which means that I will be able to look out for myself," she countered maturely, before sticking out her tongue at her brother.

"But I'm your big brother. Beating up and scaring off interested boys is my job!" he exclaimed dramatically as he pushed off from the doorframe before he walked over to her. "Besides, who am I going to pick on with you being gone, huh, shrimp?" he asked as he came to a stop in front of her.

"Isn't that what Jeremy is for? Pick on him. I plan on being a good little sister and bring all my boyfriends home so that neither you nor dad will feel left out," she said with a smile.

Hope made a choking sound. "Boyfriends? I don't think anyone said you could have a boyfriend at all! Let alone plural!"

Harry watched the interaction. He kinda wondered if Ginny had to go through this type of thing or worse with six older brothers.

"No biggy. I'll be at school, and so you can't stop me. And, even if me having a boyfriend were to be forbidden, I could just keep them a secret and you would be none-the-wiser," she reached up and patted her gobsmacked brother's arm. "See, it would be better for you if you just accept it.

"On another note: since I have a laptop, we can stay in touch while I'm gone." She reached behind her back to the small black bag on her belt, reached inside and pulled out a scrap of paper. "These are my two email addresses—the one is for my magical mail, so I don't know if you will need it, let alone be able to send anything to it. Oh! We also have a web chat-thing that is compatible with Skype, so technically you will still be able to see me when I'm gone."

Laptops and technology was something that his world of magic sorely lacked, but here, as Xion students, they were required to have laptops. They weren't the type of computers he was used to seeing—considering that Dudley had owned his fair share of those courtesy of Harry's Aunt and Uncle. Both Harry and Ivy had purchased the same type of laptop from _Dragon: Magical Electronics_ when they purchased supplies from the Regina-area magical district called Cherry Grove.

Cherry Grove was not what Harry had expected from a magical district. He had anticipated something akin to Diagon Alley, and yet Cherry Grove looked as muggle an area as any he had seen. In fact, if it weren't for the shop names and the things displayed in the shop-windows, he would have never realized he had been in a magic-zone.

Another knock on the door snapped Harry from his thoughts, and Ivy and Hope from their conversation. "Your escort is here," Ivy's dad announced. "Are you all ready to go? You have everything you need packed?"

"Yup!" Ivy said as she moved away from the mirror and walked over to the black trunk with silver fastenings. "All my books, clothing, school supplies, and stuff are all in here," she said as she taped her hand on top of the medium sized chest near her feet. "Oh, and some things are in this too," she motioned to the tiny bag that she had pulled the paper out of earlier.

"That bag is so small. How can it have more than a few pieces of paper in it?" her brother asked as he poked at the tiny black bag on his sister's side.

"Magic. I just need to place my hand inside of it, and press it against the stone inside and think about what I want to get and it appears in my hand. To put something inside the bag, I need to touch the thing to this symbol here and think about the item going into the bag," she explained. She smiled at her brother's impressed expression before meeting the gaze of her father.

"Alright then, let's get that down to the front door with Harry's stuff since Sky is here to escort the two of you to your new school. Give me a hand with this trunk, Hope."

Harry stood from the bed as David and Hope each grabbed a handle of the trunk and lugged it out of the room, leaving Harry and Ivy to stand in silence. Harry glanced to the girl, watching as her pale grey eyes surveyed her bedroom. He didn't detect sadness in her eyes, just the same steely determination that Hermione got in her eyes when she was eager to do something… like SPEW. He shook his head fondly.

Ivy nodded and looked to Harry. "Let's go, Harry."

He nodded to her, and followed her out of the room and down to the front entryway.

"Greetings, Miss Knight, Mister Potterm" a familiar voice in the doorway stated.

"Hello, Mister Loyola!" Ivy greeted with a small wave of her hand as she approached him and her father and brother at the front door.

"Hello," Harry responded.

"Dad, where's mum?"

David smiled. "She had to go in to work for an emergency surgery," he said softly as he placed his hand on her back. "She told me to tell you good bye," he added before he leaned down and pressed a kiss to the top of her head. "So, be good. Keep in contact with us. Let us know how you adjust to school life. If you forgot anything, we will for sure send it," he said as he stood straight and tapped her nose.

"You two will have fun, I'm sure," Viola stated from the bench near the door.

"Of course, Grandma! After all, we're going on an adventure!" she exclaimed with excitement.

David, Sky, and Viola all chuckled.

"Of course young Bilbo, gallivant away," David said with a straight face.

Harry just blinked in confusion at the odd family.

Ivy launched at her father in a hug. "I'll miss you," she said as she squeezed her father tightly around the middle, and pressed her face against his belly.

_That looks just like one of Mrs. Weasley's hugs_…

"Where is my hug?" Hope asked as he stuck his hands on his hips and grinned down at her.

Harry wished that he had a family like this. Even without Ivy's mom present, the family reminded him strongly of the Weasleys. He smiled sadly at the thought.

"You are so needy," Ivy said as she hugged him.

"I am not!" he stated with a frown as he hugged her tightly. "You better email me once you are settled into your dorm and tell me about everything," he said as he let her go with a smile.

"I will."

"Harry, email me too!" Hope ordered as he lightly punched Harry's arm. "That way, I'll know whether or not she is up to mischief." Hope grinned down at him.

Harry offered him a slight smile.

"You two ready?" Sky asked as he touched both of the trunks, causing them to shrink down to doll-sized trunks.

"I am!"

Harry nodded.

Sky handed a trunk to each of them, and they both tucked their own trunk into the tiny bag on the side of their belts. "Alright, I will need a hand from each of you." He held out his gloved hands.

Harry reached out and set his hand on the hot leather glove as Ivy did the same. Harry shuddered as they staggered through what felt like ice before he stumbled to a warmer spot, and promptly fell on behind. Shadowportation was as much fun as floo and portkeys. He shook his head and stood.

Ivy and Sky stared at him from where they were standing.

"What? I always botch landings." Harry dusted his pants off, noting that they had arrived in the same alleyway that that had appeared in when Sky had escorted them to the magical district for school supplies. "How do we get to school?" he asked. _I hope it is like the Hogwarts' express._

"We go to the Transportation Terminal here in the district. Every magical district has one." Sky guided them from the alley and out onto the bustling main street. They turned left. "The terminals are located within every district and are our main means of mass transportation as it is quicker, far more comfortable, and capable of greater distances than shadowportation."

"Do people live in this magical district?" Ivy asked as she watched a black car drive by.

"There are a few people that live here as there are two apartment buildings here for magical residents only, but this district is one of the smaller districts. The larger ones have whole sections for magical people to live." They used a crosswalk.

"I see lots of cars," Ivy stated as she looked around.

"It's September 5th. Many magical people live in Regina. Since there little to no magical living sectors in this district, they have to either drive here or come as we did to get to the Transportation Terminal. This district cannot be seen nor detected by the non-magical people, so the cars that come into this area seemingly just disappear into a random alleyway." They moved passed the cars that lined the meters on the sidewalk. "Non-magicals that spy this occurrence either assume they were seeing things, or think they must have missed seeing said vehicle turn off somewhere within the alley.

"Also, people who do not work in Regina, but live here, use the terminal to get to and from work, or to head to other districts," Sky explained as he lead them into a large building that had fancy stonework. The terminal was busy.

"To use transportation, you need to buy a pass," the man explained as he led her through the decent size throng of people, towards a wall of sales booths. "As a student, Xion covers the cost of your travel to and from school; we just need to pick up your passes." He lead them towards an open ticket booth. "One Ivy Knight and one Harry Potter for Xion," he stated to the young man at the desk.

The man nodded, tapped the top of the desk a few times before he pulled out two credit-card sized pieces of clear plastic. "Two passes to Xion," he said with a bored smile as he passed the cards to Ivy and Harry.

"Thank you," he said as he took the card and looked at it, turning it over to see that it was blank on all sides. _And I thought the Hogwarts' train ticket was vague…_

"Come along," Sky said as he guided them over to the other side of the terminal, where a series of tall and wide mirrors lined the wall. He inwardly cringed at them, being instantly reminded about how he had arrived in this new world in the first place.

"We use mirrors for long distant travelling," he informed them as he guided them towards an unoccupied mirror. "At these terminals," he began, "once you have your pass, you insert it into this pillar," he motioned towards the pillar beside the mirror. "Once it goes in, the frame of the mirror will light up and then you can step through it," he explained.

"Okay," Ivy said as she tilted her head to the side. "Are you not going to Xion as well?" she asked.

"I have a quick errand to run before I head over there."

"Thank you, sir," Harry said.

"Yes, thanks for escorting us here."

"No problem. Off you go," he stated.

Harry approached the black metal pillar. He placed his card into the slot on the side, and watched as the card glowed a frosted blue as it was pulled inside the pillar. His gaze shifted towards the frame of the mirror and the tiny symbols etched there as they suddenly lit up with a golden light.

"Neat," Ivy said from behind him.

He could not help but nod in agreement as he lifted his hand and pressed it against the mirror, or tried to, but the moment his hand made contact she was pulled through the cool glass and he disappeared from the terminal and into a room that had several mirrors like the one he had stepped through lining the walls.

Ivy stepped out behind him after a few seconds. "So that's what it's like to step through the looking glass."

"Welcome," a voice said. Harry jumped and turned to gaze at a young looking woman who wore a white business suit with a dark purple dress shirt underneath. In her hand was what looked to be a tablet—Ivy's mom had one of those. "Names please," she said with a smile.

"Ivy Knight."

"Harry Potter."

"Very good, Miss Knight. Mister Potter. I am Angelica Fraiser, Deputy Head of Xion," she said with a smile, as she turned to the side, her heels clicking on the marble floor. "Please follow me."

Harry and Ivy exchanged a quick look before they followed after the woman. The woman led them down the hall towards what looked to be a large round wishing pool. "Since Xion is not directly connected to the mirror transportation system, you will be required to step through the pool to get to the school grounds," she explained.

Harry blinked. "Won't we get wet?"

They approached the small step up to enter the pool and he glanced down at clear water and was surprised when he saw what looked to be a cloud filled sky at the bottom.

"Not to fear," the deputy head began with a smile, "it is a special water gate. Go ahead, I need to return to the mirror to guide more first years," she explained. "On the other side, one of the senior students will escort you to the school, have you sorted, and set you up in your dormitory," she explained before she turned around, and walked off, her heels clicking loudly.

Harry stared after the woman as she walked off before he climbed up the step. Hesitating for a moment, he placed the toe of his boot against the water and was surprised it was solid. Blinking with surprise, he moved to stand fully on the solid water. "Is it frozen?" he asked as Ivy joined him. With a lurch in his stomach, they dropped through the pool. Expecting to become soaked, he flailed slightly, before he realised he was standing ankle deep in water under an open sky with trees all around them.

"Erm…"

"At least I know my new boots don't have any holes in them," Ivy said at his side as she offered him a small grin.

Harry nodded, thankful that his feet were still dry within his books. He took the few steps to the edge of the pool and climbed up on the lip of grey stone that had etchings engraved into it.

"Hey, these are just like the etchings on that mirror in the terminal," Ivy announced. "I'm guessing they are not for decoration alone."

"Hi!" a voice to the side stated as an older girl jogged up to them, her boots crunching on the gravel path. The teen wore the same uniform as Ivy, though where Ivy's was trimmed in white, hers was trimmed crimson. "Name is Aribella Hawthor and I'll be your escort, little firsties!" the girl said with a broad grin on her tanned face. The teen was easily twice Harry's height. Her hair was black and streaked through with emerald green, and her irises were crimson. "What's your name kids?"

"Harry Potter."

"Ivy Knight."

"Well, come along then!" Aribella said as she grabbed their wrists and began to pull them away from the pool and passed several grinning people that had crimson or black trim on their uniforms.

"You found a couple of cute ones, Ari!" A boy they passed stated as he grinned at them.

"Back off, Kenny! My new protégées are off limits to you!" Aribella stated as she stuck her tongue out at the guy and dragged them passed the laughing teenager. "Don't mind him, he is just trying to be funny," she said with a smile.

The dirt path they were on met up with another path, and Harry spied the giant white stonewall and gateway that Aribella was leading them towards. As they walked under the giant stone archway, Harry looked up at the gate with his mouth wide. He had never seen such a high wall. As they passed through, Harry returned his gaze before him, and his eyes widened at the colossal white castle that stood before them.

"Pretty impressive, eh?" the crimson eyed teen asked with a wide grin. "And just think, you have nine years of this place. I'm kind of envious of you. I graduate at the end of the year, then bye-bye Xion, hello Canada Magical U!"

"Canada Magical U?" Ivy asked, tilting her head.

Aribella blinked down at her. "You must be new to the magical world! It's the University of Canada for magical folks, which is the only magical university in this country. My mom wanted me to go to Atlantis University, but I wasn't accepted." She paused a moment. "See that building over there?" she said, switching subjects, as she pointed to a massive structure that was greatly dwarfed by the castle.

Harry turned his gaze to the side, where the teen was pointing and he couldn't help but grin. It reminded him of the Quidditch pitch.

"What is it?"

"That's Xion's Mage Boarding Stadium! I am the team Captain and I play Blitzer," she explained.

_Not Quidditch?_

"Uh… Mage board? Blitzer? I have no idea what you are talking about," Ivy admitted.

"Duuuude! Mage-boarding is the best sport ever! Okay, it is a game between two teams. Each team has nine players. Each player uses a mage board—err that's a hover board—to fly around the field. Each team has one Guardian, four Blitzers, two Strikers, and two Defenders. In MB, there are three goal platforms on each side of the field and they rotate around, and if you time it right, you can score in all three at once. The Guardian guards these goal platforms. The Blitzers try to score on the opposing team's goals. The Strikers try to prevent the Blitzers and the Defenders try to protect the Blitzers from the Strikers. With me so far?"

Harry nodded his head, and couldn't help but transpose the face of Oliver Wood onto Aribella with how excited she was discussing the sport.

"Good. It's an awesome game, biggest thing in the Americas," she added on as they walked between the towering walls of the castle and into the courtyard that led to the front doors.

"So… no broomsticks?"

Aribella snorted. "Broomsticks are so last century. There is no way you'd catch me riding on some little stick, that would be rather uncomfortable, and I can only imagine how painful it would be for men to place all their weight on a small area in their private regions. Any jostling…," she said trailed off as they approached the giant white doors that swung open as they neared. "Anywho! Welcome to Xion!" she said as she ushered them through the massive doorway.

Harry looked around, his mouth opened in awe. The entry hall was quite large—larger than even the one at Hogwarts. The walls were the same white stone as the exterior and the floor was a white marble shot through with black veins. Across from the grand entrance, Harry saw a massive stairwell, and on the walls to either side of the stairwell entry were banners, three on each side. The banners were blue, orange, green, purple, black, and red, and all of them had the frosted blue rose at the center.

To the right, stood two large doorways that were side by side, one of which was open, and Harry could see long tables and benches through the open door. To the left, he spied one hall that led off into the castle.

"Wow," Ivy said.

Harry silently concurred with her.

"It is pretty impressive, eh?" the teen agreed as she twirled a clump of green hair around her index finger. "Things are just starting too, so don't be too gobsmacked yet!" Aribella said with a laugh. "Come on, into the dining hall!" she said as she pulled them behind her into the room filled with the long tables that were lined with benches.

"Hey, Ari! I see you found another poor victim to mentor!" a voice at the front of the hall called.

Harry looked to the small group of people at the front of the hall. There were three students that looked to be about Aribella's age, two students that looked to be his and Ivy's age, and one man who looked to be about middle-aged.

"Yup! Lucky the batch of first years are so plentiful, we all get two or three minions!" Aribella called up as she pulled them to join the group at the front.

"Miss Hawthor, the first years are not your minions," the man dressed in casual black slacks and a white button up shirt, stated.

"Yes, sir, Journeyman Galligher!" Aribella said as she saluted the man. "He teaches Magical Literature for fourth through sixth years," she whispered down to them. "This, sir, is Miss Knight and Mister Potter!" she said before she nudged them to join the other two other people with white lined uniforms.

"Yes, we were just about to see which house these two boys would join," the man said with a sigh. "You first," he said pointing at the boy nearest him.

Ivy watched as the one boy took a clear coloured orb from one of the senior students. The orb changed colours and began to glow blue.

"This one is a Pixie!" the one senior stated as he took the orb back. "Next!"

The other boy walked forwards and took the orb. This time, the orb became orange, instead of blue.

"Hah! Looks like you are a Nymph!" the teen stated as he took the orb.

Ivy looked up at Aribella curiously.

_That's different than what I was expecting,_ Harry thought, surprised by how semi-private the sorting was.

"Oh! First through third years are sorted into one of two houses. None of us really know how the orb determines which house you belong to, but it works," she said with a shrug as the two boys were guided out of the hall with their seniors.

"Your turn!" the teen with the orb said as he held it out to Ivy.

Ivy looked at the orb, unsure, before she reached out and took it in her hands. The orb turned bright blue. "I'm a Pixie?" she asked, before the teen could.

"That you are!" the teen said with a solemn expression, before offering her a wink, as he took the orb back.

"My other first year was sorted into Nymph," Aribella said. "I was a Nymph too. In fourth year I made it into the Siren house, and now I'm a Red Dragon. Anyway, you're up, Harry."

Harry took two awkward steps forward and accepted the orb. It was warm in his hands, and the focus stone on his palm tingled at the contact. It turned blue.

"Another Pixie!"

"That makes things easy for me," Aribella said as she waved farewell to the people orchestrating the sorting. She lead them from the hall, into the entry, and up the massive stairwell. "Your common room and dorms are located on the second floor."

On the second flight, they exited through the archway onto the floor, before swinging a right followed by a left, then a right, then a left, another left, a quick right, and a right again.

Harry blinked, not sure if he could remember the route as they arrived at a dead end.

"You said you were a nymph…?" Ivy questioned; there was a small smile on her face. "Maybe we took a wrong right turn?"

Aribella gave her an unamused look. "I know it looks like a plain old wall," she began, "but this is really the entryway to your dorms and common room," she said as she pulled out a black notebook from her belt bag. She flipped through several pages. "Aha! The way into each is different. According to this, the way in simply requires you to place your hand upon the wall, and 'walk forth'," she read, before snapping her notebook shut. "You may do the honours!"

Harry looked at the wall. _It sounds like the barricade onto Platform 9 and 3/4s._ The wall was simple and plain. He placed his hand against the wall. It was smooth and cold. "'Walk forth,'" he said, surprised at the fact that the wall felt solid. He gave it a bit of a push. A sudden fuzziness wrapped around his sense, and just as suddenly he was in a small room with white lights. There were no doors and no windows.

Aribella stepped through behind him with Ivy hot on her heels. "Oh… This doesn't look right," Aribella said before she flipped open her book and began leafing through the pages with a frown as she muttered under her breath.

Ivy wondered forward and placed her hand against the far wall and pushed. It did not budge.

_Not much of a common room and dorms... _

He ran his hand along the wall as he walked to the left as he sought out a second secret passage. At the corner, he moved his hand to the parallel wall and the fuzziness consumed him again. Blinking, he was suddenly in a much larger room. Ivy and Aribella stepped through behind him, and bumped into his back. He stumbled.

"Good job finding it!" the older teen praised as she steadied him with a hand on his shoulder. "Piece of advice though, once you step through something like that, you had best move aside," she said before she placed her notebook into the small black bag on the back of her belt. "You wouldn't want to get trampled."

The common room was of the same white stone walls and marble floors as the rest of the castle. Three out of four of the walls had giant marble fireplaces, with blue leather couches in front of them. Other blue couches and chairs were around the room in little circles, with coffee tables between them. On the walls were paintings and bolts of blue silk hangings. It looked elegant and cozy.

"Neat," Ivy said.

The common room was nearly empty—there was a group of people near the far fireplace, but otherwise it was just the three of them lurking in the doorway that was marked by a blue star on the wall.

"Yup, now come along," Aribella said before snagging his tie, plucking it from the confines of his blazer, and dragging him towards the archways in the middle of the wall to their left.

Harry stumbled after her, his eyes wide with surprise at her actions. "Girl dorms are on the left, boys on the right. Girls are incapable of entering the boy dorms, and vice-versa. So no clandestine meetings in the middle of the night in a lover-boy's dorm," she said with a wink towards Ivy. "Your name should already be on one of the doors, which means that it will be your room for the next three years. You will more than likely be sharing with roommates," she said as she released his tie. She grabbed Ivy's next and dragged her through the left archway, leaving Harry blinking after them.

"You will have to settle into your room on your own, Harry. I can't get through the barricade as I'm a girl." They disappeared from sight.

Harry walked into the right archway, his gaze focusing on the doors as he passed them by. He spied his name on a door with five other names. _Lavi Blackwynd, Evander LeFaye, Orion LeFaye, Harry Potter, Cepheus Prince, and Serpens Thorn_. They all sounded like a bunch of purebloods to him. _I Hope Pixie isn't like Slytherin_. He gathered his Gryffindor courage and opened the door.

The room was very large, though it was far longer than it was wide. Six beds, each with a night stand and desk, were scattered throughout the room. They looked to be queen sized beds decked in rich blue colours and pillows, and they had blue hangings to bring the user privacy much like the beds in the Gryffindor dorm. Windows with rich blue curtains were on all three walls, all of which showed outside… yet two of those walls were common to other rooms in the Pixie dorms.

"Hi."

Harry looked at the two boys who sat side by side on a rumpled bed. They would have been mirror images of each other, but one wore his brown hair short and neat, while the other wore it in a way that made it look as messy as Harry's.

"Hi," he said back. "I'm Harry."

"Orion!" the messy haired one proclaimed. "This is Evander."

"Twins?" he asked, before feeling stupid for asking the obvious.

"Nope. We are triplets, but our brother ended up in Nymph. You'll know him when you see him. He looks like us, but he has long hair."

Harry nodded as his gaze fell to the only bed that did not have a trunk at the foot of it. "I guess that is the only one open?" he asked as he motioned to the bed farthest from the door.

"That's right," the neat-haired brother said as he stood. "The others were already in here. I think they left for the common room. By the way, are you British?"

Harry nodded at him as he walked over to the bed that was to be his. He placed his hand on the bed and pressed down. It was softer than any bed he had ever felt.

"What's your creature?"

"Pardon?" Harry asked as he turned to look at the two.

"You know, your bloodline—ow! What did you do that for?" He rubbed the spot on his heard where the neat-hair brother had hit him.

"Don't assume that everyone is from a creature line. He could very well be of mundane origins," Evander chided his brother. "I'm sorry if he was rude. Orion's brain is about as organised as his hair."

"Erm…"

"Do you have creature blood in your line?"

Harry shook his head slowly in the negative. _Does he mean like a Veela or Werewolf?_

"I didn't think so. See, all but the mundane lines have creature blood in them. Some lines have more recent creature blood than others. My brother and I have Death Fairy blood from our father's side, and Alicanto blood from our mother's side. Both sides of our family gained their magic a long time ago through our human ancestors breeding with those two types of magical creatures.

Harry blinked. He had no idea was death fairies or alicantos were.

"Our roommate, Lavi, I think he is a direct descendant of a creature, just going by his appearance."

Harry nodded with confusion.

"I'm probably losing you. See, unlike the mundane-born, our ancestors had to interbreed in order to gain magic into the line. You and the small number of other people without creature blood have a natural affinity. So I should warn you that plenty of people will want to get close to you. Those with creature blood produce greater offspring with those of natural affinities, both in numbers of children and in power."

Harry blinked slowly. _I'm guessing that muggleborn-types are not as looked down upon by the… old magical families here._

"Don't worry about it too much," Orion said with a shrug.

Harry nodded and reached into his little bag and pulled out his tiny trunk. _Now… Sky said to focus, imagine and say words that help…_ he thought as he stared at his trunk. "Engorgio!" he said. The trunk returned to its original size. From his bag on his belt, he felt his grimmoires vibrate and instinctively he knew that his spell to make items bigger had registers on it.

"Woah! You already know spells?!"

"Erm." He looked back at the brothers. "I just wanted to try it." He shrugged, avoiding a straight answer so that he could avoid lying directly.

"See what I mean about natural affinity!" Evander said with a smile.

_But I am from an older bloodline—but I suppose my mom was a muggleborn… maybe this theory is the same for my world..._ If this was true, it could mean something big for his world.

**HP-HP-HP-HP-HP-HP-HP-HP-HP**

Location: History 7-9 Office, 4th Floor Xion (**Siri's P.O.V.**)

Thud. Thud. Smack. Thud. Thud. Smack. Siri paused in her game, and squeezed the red and blue ball tightly in her hand as she reclined further in her black leather office chair. "Are you certain you were not seen?" she questioned as she squeezed the ball tightly with both hands, her gaze locked on her hands.

"I am certain," a voice behind her back stated. "I made sure to lure him to an empty portion of the castle, and he was most _willing_ to come with me. Even had someone followed, I would not have been suspected of anything more than inappropriate behaviour. Further, he is waiting for me in the playroom."

Siri nodded thoughtfully. She tossed the ball at the floor and watched as it bounced up and struck the wall. Thud. Thud. Smack. The sounds echoed throughout her office as she caught the ball. "Has anyone noted his absence?" she questioned after a moment, before tossing the ball again. Thud. Thud. Smack.

"Not yet."

"Good. Do not get caught. Remember to be discreet," Siri said absently as she scowled at the ball in her hands. She tossed it again. Thud. Thud. Smack. "Dismissed," she said as she caught the ball again. Two sets of feet exited her office, leaving her to a click of the door, and then silence. _I suppose I should get a move on with things too._ She stood and placed her ball in an empty bowl on her desk before she walked to the door, her flat shoes making little noise on the marble floor. She exited her office, closed, and locked the door behind her.

Siri walked along a long hall, weaving her way down the familiar route to the main stairwell. She descended.

"Good morning, Primrose," a woman greeted her with a small smile as the two of them came to a halt at the stairs that led down from the third floor to the second level of the castle. "Are you looking forward to the start of term?"

"Morning, Mirage," Siri responded with a small smile. _I am looking forward to crippling my enemies,_ she thought. "I am. I just thought I would take advantage of my last few hours of freedom, and stretch my legs. Once the term officially starts, we will all be too busy to have time for leisurely strolls about the castle," she responded as they both continued down the steps. _Especially since I have to devote what time I can to my mission._

The older woman chuckled, her smile crinkling the crow's feet on the sides of her eyes. "True enough. Once all the students arrive we all have far less time to enjoy what leisure we love. I know that the school term cuts down my time to do my quilting," she admitted, as they reached the main level of the castle. "But the world cannot run on leisurely lifestyles," she said. "Oh well. The staff meeting starts in about one hour in the staff lounge," she said as she waved farewell to Siri and moved towards the room for the meeting.

"See you!" she called back. _Finally. Now I can get to work, _she thought as she placed her hand on the cool and smooth marble railing on the stairs. _The only question is where I should set up the beginnings of my plan._ _I need somewhere convincing enough to be an accident_. A smile flickered across her face; Siri had an idea.

Siri drummed her fingers across the smooth wood of the table where she sat, peering out over the massive great hall. Though the hall was massive, she had lost interest in it long ago, but she knew the children being ushered into the hall were looking around with avid attention, and paying little detail to the staff assembled within the chamber.

On the wall opposite the double doors to enter the room, were stain glass windows, stretching from floor to ceiling. There were nine windows, the center one three times wider than the other eight, which were very narrow, no wider than an adult's shoulder. The walls connected to the far one had tall narrow windows, with black metal patterns through them. In front of the stain glass windows, was a four step high marble platform. Atop the platform was two large dark wood tables that had chairs backing the windows. Between the two tables was a medium sized gap with a podium at the front and center of it. The podium was draped with a shiny dark plum cloth that had the frosted-blue rose on the front. On the left side of the platform was a door. The staff tables wrapped around the outside of the room leaving space at the center of the room for six long white-wood tables with matching benches.

It was not the scenery that Siri was eyeing with calculating boredom, but the figures that were being led one by one into the great hall. Siri, like all her colleagues in Xion, was seated in her chair, staring down at the small first year students that were being herded into the room by upperclassmen. The tiny boys and girls had blue or orange lining on their uniforms, marking them as members of either the Pixie or Nymph house. The Pixies were seated to the right of the aisle that passed at the center of the six tables and stretched up to the podium at the back wall, while the Nymphs were seated to the left.

She let her eyes trail over each child, one by one, trying to assess the threat each and every one of them posed to her mission. Just by appearance, they all looked like innocent children. She knew better. Each and every one of those kids possessed magic, a blasphemous power that belonged to gods, not mortals. They were Ejrtyn, and they were a threat to Eve's regime. The Ejrtyn were necessary to eradicate to gain the neutral ground they needed to purge all in the name of the All-Father.

"May I have your attention please?" a voice called out, the sound amplified by the hovering crystal at the podium, where the deputy head of the school stood.

Siri, like all others in the room, turned her attention to the woman.

"Thank you. As you all are aware, I am the Deputy Headmistress Angelica Fraiser. As I am sure you have noted, first years, you and the senior students are the only students presently at Xion Academy of Sorcery. The remainder of the student body will arrive shortly before dinner. You are here early, so that we may introduce you to what expectations we have for you at our establishment," she said as she folded her hands atop the podium. "Without further ado, I would like to introduce our Headmistress, the Grand Master Mirage Quincy," she said before she started clapping; the staff and students copied her example.

Siri watched as the head of the school stood and approached the podium. "Welcome to Xion! I am thrilled to see such an astonishing number of first year students. We haven't had this many of you since the 1970s," she said with a broad smile as she tucked her shoulder length hair behind her ears. "It's always refreshing to see so many new faces, all young and eager to learn what we have to offer—some more so than others. Now, before we get down into the finer details of this assembly, I think introductions are in order."

"I will give introductions, starting from my right and going around the hall," she motioned to her right, where her own empty chair stood. "May I present Kateri Zanix, Rituals Novice for years seven through nine." The woman stood up, and waved with a smile, under the close scrutiny of the students. "To her right is Chandra Shores, Master of Necromancy who teaches years seven through nine." She too stood and waved. "Horatio Conner is our Master in Magical Literature, and he teaches years seven through nine."

Siri's gaze wondered through the staff as they were introduced one by one, her gaze moving onto each of her colleagues, all of whom would do their utmost to ensure that Siri's enemies would be trained to their fullest. _I need to take some of them out as well, if I cripple the instructors as well as the blasphemous spawn, I may be able to further weaken their ability to thwart us._

"Ophelia Hamillton is our years seven through nine Animation Journeyman. Vincent Gordon-Hewley is our senior Botany Master. Sky Loyola is our seven through nine Potions Master." Two seats between Sky and the person to his right were empty. "Next is George Tucker, our Master of Ceremonial Magics who teaches years seven through nine. Switching to the next table. Our first two are our two Latin Novices, Lesander Meban and Krystal Cullingham, who teach years four through six, and seven through nine respectively. Next are our two French Novices, Kiara Friandise and Claire Bourgeois, who teach years four through six and seven through nine respectively.

"Next are our two History Novices: Bridgette Leonis and Primrose Quinn, who teach years four through six, and seven through nine respectively." Siri stood as her undercover name was uttered, her fellow History teacher alongside her. She gave a brief, bored wave, before plopping back down onto her chair, and regarding the remainder of the people being introduced.

"Paul Maxwell is our Duelling Journeyman who teaches years four through six, and Brendon Wolfe is our Duelling Master who teaches years seven through nine. Pamela Peace and Shauna Brickly are both Law Journeymen who teach years one through three, and four through six, respectively. On the far side of the gap are our Botany Novice Laurelle Chan, and Botany Journeyman Max Jefferson, who teach one through three, and four through six respectively. Madison Lee and Sakura Carter are Potions Journeymen who teach years one through three, and four through six respectively. And the last, but not least, at this table are our two Healers, Doctors Jeremiah Turner and Rhianna Valley who teach years one through three, and four through six.

"At the back table, we have our other two Magical Literature instructors, Novice Loretta MacDonald and Journeyman Jim Galligher, who teach one through three, and four through six respectively. Over the next gap, we have two of our Magical Beings instructors: Journeymen Neil Strong who teaches one through three, and Keely Breeton who teaches four through six. Over yet another gap, we have Divination Novice Winfrey Dawn who teaches years one through three, and Journeyman Samantha Stahl—"

Siri sat up straighter, a light frown marring her face as the woman was introduced. Sam had stood but a moment later, a moment barely perceptible, yet Siri couldn't help but notice the woman's intense stare into the field of new students. It took her a moment, but she managed to follow the woman's gaze with narrowed silver-blue eyes. The woman's intense gaze was focused on the Pixie table, on the figure of a small slip of a girl and a dark haired boy with round glasses that sat beside her.

The girl and boy were small, easily the smallest first years at the table. _And what makes these demonic little dolls so interesting?_ She pondered thoughtfully, her fingers drumming along the wooden surface of her table as she tuned out the remainder of the headmistress' teaching staff introductions.

She sat up straighter, her fingers frozen mid-beat. _Oh. Well that is interesting. She must be the girl-child that she saw in her vision, the one relating to the Commander. The boy… _ She squinted her eyes and noticed a lightning bolt scar on his forehead. _That mark… is he the traitor? Eve will be most interested to learn of this. The question is, will the girl be an ally or an enemy? And if the boy is the traitor… _Siri began to tap her fingers anew. _Now what was it she said again… _She pondered absently the pieces of the vision she had been told about, not removing her gaze from the children in question. _For the moment, I'll have to have my operatives steer clear of the girl and boy; their purpose is yet unclear. Such a pity that I do not teach first years and have a reasonable excuse to speak with them. Perhaps I need to make a situation to meet with them so that I might find out more of their purpose in whatever it was that the wench with foresight saw. _

"—classes they may take," Mirage said, her words cutting back into Siri's mind and dispelling her contemplation. "You will all be taking the mandatory core classes that all students, years one through nine, must take to graduate from Xion. These classes are: Animation, Battle Magic, Spell Crafting, Magical Beings, Magical Literature, Summoning, Rituals, Botany, Potions, Necromancy, Divination, and Law. However, upon entry into your fourth year, you may take one or more electives that we offer. These classes are Duelling, History, French, Latin, Healing, and Ceremonial Magics," Mirage paused as she placed her hands upon the podium and leaned forward to glance at the children assembled before her.

"Please be on time to each and every one of your classes. Skipping or tardiness is unacceptable behaviour that can and will result in detention, and lose of house and personal points. Once you return to your common rooms, the senior student assigned to your house will pass out your class schedules and maps so that you may find your classrooms. Should you become lost, feel free to ask fellow students or staff for directions. We are all happy to point people in the right direction.

"Meal times and curfews are noted on your schedules, so please consult them closely. By curfew, you must be inside your common rooms, while you do not need to be in bed, you will be penalized harshly should you be found outside after curfew. Therefore, keep your wanderings to the time you are permitted to be outside. For a detailed list of all school rules, please see your message boards posted in your common rooms, or the one in the hallway just outside of this hall, or the one posted outside the disciplinary clubroom. If any of these rules are broken, you will have to serve a punishment fitting to your indiscretion.

"At Xion, we have a point system for both the houses and the individuals. Every time you misbehave, you lose yourself and your house one star. On the other hand, should you do well in classes and such; you will receive a star for both your house and yourself. At the end of each year, the house and the individual in each house with the highest star count will be rewarded with a prize. The house scoreboards are displayed above the banners in the entry hall. The individual scoreboards are located in your common rooms. The house that wins at the end of the year will be given a prize, one that will be voted upon by the house members and then approved by the staff. Rewards have been anything from a trip to one of the few magical cities, or a party, or a renovation of the house common room. The individual prizes are of lesser value, but no less rewarding. The individual victors may choose their prize. One student chose to be exempt from her Law classes for the duration of her time at Xion, and we permitted it, and thus it is a very rewarding potential.

"On another note, it is mandatory for all students to participate in two or more school clubs. Next Saturday will have the clubs putting on exhibitions for recruitment. The clubs that are age restricted will not participate in the exhibition. I advise you to go and see what the clubs have to offer, mingle with the club members, and then sign up for whichever clubs you find most appealing. These clubs are mandatory, and you most actively participate in whatever clubs you join. Passive attendance will not be tolerated.

"Uniforms should be worn during classes and meals. Casual clothing may be worn for evenings, weekends and club activities. Casual clothing must, however, meet the guidelines. Spaghetti and lasagna strap tank tops are not allowed. Muscle shirts are not allowed. No shirts are permitted to display midriff; your bellies should always be well covered. Skirts are to be no shorter than the length of your uniform, that is to say, two inches above the knees." Mirage surveyed the faces of the new students, while Siri continued to stare at the children.

"The grading system at Xion is slightly different than what many of you will be familiar with. For every one of your classes, at the end of the year, you must submit a final project in lieu of an exam. This project is something that you must choose on your own and receive permission from your instructor to work on. Only one person per class may be assigned the grade of Grand Master, which means that he or she has obtained the highest grade in the course. Further, whoever achieves it will receive a reward from the instructor. This project does not mean you will not have tests, quizzes, and homework. You will have plenty of those." The students were silent, likely too intimidated to make a response.

"Grades at Xion from best to worst are: GM: Grand Master, which is reserved for the highest achieved grade; MA: Master, which is given for a score of 90% to 100%; J: Journeyman, which is reserved for a grade between 80% and 89%; A: Apprentice, which is reserved for a grade between 70% and79%; S: Standard, which is for a grade between 60% and 69%; P: Poor, which is a grade between 50% and 59%; and M: mundane, which is a failing grade. If you fail a class, you will be required to attend supplementary classes on evenings, weekends and/or holidays. You must pass a class to continue on in studying it. With the exception of exemptions, one must take and pass all classes to achieve their diplomas."

_Maybe the All-Father will make it so that those two will end up in my club_. Siri thought as she rested her chin in her palm. _Wishful thinking is useless to my position. I will consult Eve. Now if only this stupid gathering of the fiendish degenerates would end… _

**HP-HP-HP-HP-HP-HP-HP-HP-HP**

Thank you for reading this latest installment.

A special thanks to the following Reviewers (the first and only two I have received):

**Shootingcuz**

**Droga1**


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